Shrimp Aquaculture

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Shrimp Aquaculture

• LaDon Swann
• Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium
• Auburn University

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World harvest of farmed marine shrimp in 1999 was
814,250 MT
Thailand 200,000 MT China 110,000
MT Indonesia 100,000 MT Ecuador 85,000
MT India 70,000 MT
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Shrimp Gee-Whiz

• Shrimp, crabs, lobsters and crayfish are
  invertebrates referred to as decapods (10 feet)
• Hundreds of species of shrimp inhabit the
  brackish and marine waters of the globe.
• Most are rare, very small, or not suitable for
  human consumption.
• A shrimp "swims" by quickly pulling its abdomen
  in toward its carapace (body). This motion shoots
  them through the water. Because of body
  configuration shrimp swim backward.
• All farm-raised shrimp and most of the shrimp
  caught by fishermen belong to the Penaeidae
  family of decapod crustaceans and are referred to
  as "penaeids".

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Geographic Range

• Marine shrimp are native to all the oceans and
  seas of the world and numerous species are
  farmed.

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Shrimp Species

• Giant Tiger Shrimp (Penaeus monodon)
• Named for its huge size and banded tail, P.
  monodon still accounts for most of the farmed
  shrimp coming out of Asia, but it's likely to
  lose that position to P. vannamei over the next
  couple of years.
• Native to the Indian Ocean and the southwestern
  Pacific Ocean from Japan to Australia, "tigers"
  are the largest (maximum length 363 mm) and
  fastest growing of the farmed shrimp.
• They tolerate a wide range of salinities, but
  shortages of wild broodstock often exist, captive
  breeding is difficult and hatchery survivals are
  low (20 to 30). Tigers are very susceptible to
  two of the most lethal shrimp viruses yellowhead
  and whitespot.
• Reddish-orange on the sides and pearly-white on
  the top and bottom

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Shrimp Species

• Western White Shrimp (Penaeus vannamei)
• Native to the Pacific coast of Central and South
  America,
• Leading farm-raised species in the Western
  Hemisphere, representing more than 95 of
  production.
• Because vannamei feeds on organisms which grow
  naturally in the pond, it is cheaper to feed than
  monodon.
• White shrimp can be stocked at small sizes, have
  a uniform growth rate and reach a maximum length
  of 230 millimeters.
• They breed in captivity better than monodon
• Hatchery survivals are high, from 50 to 60.
  Throughout Latin America, hatcheries maintain
  captive stocks of vannamei broodstock.
• Look for it to become the dominant species in
  Asia over the next couple of years.

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Shrimp Species

• Chinese White Shrimp (Penaeus chinensis)
• Native to the coast of China and the west coast
  of the Korean peninsula.
• Chinese white shrimp grow better in lower water
  temperatures (down to 16 degrees Celsius) than
  vannamei and monodon
• Tolerate muddy bottoms and very low
  salinitiesand, unlike the above species, Chinese
  white shrimp readily mature and spawn in ponds.
• On the negative side, they have a high protein
  requirement (40 to 60), a small size (maximum
  length of 183 millimeters), and a lower meat
  yield (56) than monodon (61) and vannamei
  (63).
• Also, chinensis appears to be more susceptible to
  viruses than vannamei.

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Shrimp Species

• Freshwater Prawns (Macrobrachium spp.)
• World production of farmed prawns has risen to
  around 200,000 metric tons, worth about a billion
  dollars, most of it from Bangladesh and China.
• The genus Macrobrachium, which includes about 200
  species, almost all of which live in freshwater
  for at least part of their life cycle, native to
  all continents except Europe.
• The favored species for farming has always been
  M. rosenbergii, sometimes called the "giant river
  prawn" or the "Malaysian prawn
• In the United States, there are more than 500
  small freshwater prawn farms (M. rosenbergii).
• Resemble giant tiger shrimp, but they're bigger,
  chunkier, lighter in color, and their shells are
  always on.
• If the bottom part of the shell on the second
  tail segment overlaps the shell on the first and
  third segments, it's a freshwater prawn.

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Shrimp Species

• Brown shrimp (Farfantepenaeus aztecus)
• Found in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
• Most abundant of the three Gulf Shrimp
• The brown shrimp is closely related to the pink
  shrimp
• The brown shrimp is found in murkier and often
  deeper water.
• Spawn offshore from November to April.
• Young adults move out of protected marsh areas
  from May to July.
• Excellent bait species candidate

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Shrimp Species

• White shrimp or Atlantic Shrimp (Litopenaeus
  setiferus)
• Found in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
• Second most harvested species in the three Gulf
  Shrimp
• The white shrimp is generally found in waters
  that are muddier, shallower, and less salty than
  waters where pink shrimp and brown shrimp live
• Spawn offshore from March to October
• Juvenile whites tolerate low salinity better than
  browns
• Young adults migrate offshore from July to
  November

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Shrimp Species

• Pink shrimp (Farfantepenaeus duorarum)
• Found in Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
• Least abundant of the three Gulf Shrimp
• This species generally lives in clear waters.
• Spawn offshore from May through November
• Migrate out of marshes from April to September

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Gulf Shrimp Identification

• Brown
• Groove on either side of spine on back of head
• Similar groove on the last body segment before
  the tail segment (A)
• Pink
• Groove on either side of spine on back of head
• Similar groove on the last body segment before
  the tail segment
• Dark or pinkish blotch on each side of body
  between carapace and tail (B)
• White
• No grooves on spine or last segment before tail
  (C)

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Penaeid Shrimp Life Cycle
Shrimp have a maximum life span of about 24
months.
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Larval Staging

• Penaeid Shrimp pass through three larval stages
• Nauplii
• Zoeal
• Mysis
• Postlarval (PL) follows larval stages
• Look like shrimp by this stage

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Nauplii Stage

• Six sub-stages
• May lose 25
• Nauplii sub-stages take approximately 48 hours
• 36-51 hour range depending on temperature
• Begin feeding at N6

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Zoeal Stage

• Zoea feed on phytoplankton
• Three zoeal substages
• 120 hrs
• 36-48 hrs per stage

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Mysis Stage

• Look like adult shrimp
• Begin to swim backwards
• Three sub-stages
• Each last 24 hrs

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Post Larvae

• Postlarvae (PL)
• PL1 one day PL
• 0.0008 g/PL1
• PL 20 20 day PL
• 0.02 g/PL20
• Swimming seta present on pleopods
• Reared in tanks or raceways
• Stocked in ponds beginning around PL15-PL20.

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Larval FeedingZoea

• Isochrysis
• Brown algae
• (3-5 mm)
• Chaetoceros
• Diatom
• (4-6 mm)
• Tetraselmis
• Green algae
• (10-15 mm)

Isochrysis
Chaetoceros
Tetraselmis
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Larval FeedingMysis

• Feed large algae cells early on
• Switch to artemia (brine shrimp) for later stages

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Larval FeedingPostlarvae

• Artemia
• 6/ml at PL4 decreasing to 0 by PL11
• Formulated diet
• 35 protein
• 3 fat
• Feeding rate
• 200 bwt/day
• 50 X 4 times per day

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General Shrimp Farming Concepts

• Marine shrimp are grown in earthen ponds located
  in coastal areas of countries with tropical and
  subtropical climates.
• Ponds are filled with saltwater pumped from
  estuaries and oceans. Small shrimp reproduced and
  raised in captivity are stocked into the ponds
  and are ready for harvest in 90 to 120 days.

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Farm Location

• Locate ponds close to good quality brackish water
• 5-30 ppt
• Farms can be inland if suitable aquifers are
  available
• Soil should have high clay content
• 25
• Water table should not be within three feet of
  surface

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Farm Permits

• Construction permits from Corps of Engineers
• Aquaculture Permits from state
• Local permits

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Farming Strategies

• Extensive
• Large ponds
• Low stocking densities
• Little management or investment
• Semi-Intensive
• Falls in between the two extreme of intensive and
  extensive
• Intensive
• Smaller ponds
• Aeration
• High stocking densities
• Feeding

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Pond Construction

• Ponds range in size from 1-10 acres
• 4-7 feet deep
• Gentle bottom slope
• Well maintained levee

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Gulf and Inland Shrimp Species

• Food
• Western white shrimp
• Penaeus vannamei
• Northern white shrimp
• Litopenaeus setiferus
• Freshwater shrimp
• Macrobrachium spp.
• Bait
• Brown shrimp
• Farfantepenaeus aztecus

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Stocking

• Stock with post larval shrimp (PL)
• ½ inch in length
• Stock 40,000-80,000 PLs per acre
• Havest 3,000lbs/acrea

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Management

• Fertilize ponds prior to stocking
• Feed good quality shrimp feed
• 35 protein
• 3-5 bwt per day
• Provide aeration when necessary

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Harvest

• Harvest in October
• 22-36 count
• Drain and seine ponds
• Direct market or sell to processor

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Common Problems

• Shortage of PLs
• Shrimp viruses