Module 2
Module 2
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Name of Author: IRENE CRIS P. TAGHAP
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M O D U L E II
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Module Overview
Hi everyone! Welcome to Module 2. This module provides an introduction and basic principles to fish
farming and identifies its different methods. This also helps you to select what fish species to grow.
Module Objectives/Outcomes
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MODULE II: INTRODUCTION TO FISH FARMING
Learning Outcomes
Introduction
Hi everybody, welcome to Lesson 2! This lesson will help you understand fish farming practices and
identifies different methods of fish farming. Hope you will enjoy this lesson.
Activity
! Let’s have an activity. Label the parts of the fish .! (10 points)
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Analysis
Rubrics:
Description 5 3 2 1
Content Very informative Somewhat Gives some Was not able to give
and well informative and information but some information and
organized organized poorly organized poorly organized
Abstraction
In many parts of the world, fish have provided an important part of people's diets for centuries. During
the last hundred years, fish catches have increased rapidly due to technological improvements
including more powerful engines and sonar equipment. Despite the fact that growth in fish catches
stopped some 15 years ago, overfishing had already caused the worldwide decrease in stocks to
become a real problem. The need to increase fish production by fish farming is urgent. Fish farming is
the raising of fish for personal use or profit. It is sometimes called fish culture.
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Methods of Fish Farming
Fish farming may range from ‘backyard’ subsistence ponds to large scale industrial enterprises.
Farming systems can be expressed in terms of input levels (Illustration 2.1).
In extensive fish farming, economic and labor inputs are usually low. Natural food production plays a
very important role, and the system’s productivity is relatively low. Fertilizer may be used to increase
fertility and thus fish production.
Semi-intensive fish farming requires a moderate level of inputs and fish production is increased by the
use of fertilizer and/or supplementary feeding. This means higher labor and feed costs, but higher fish
yields usually more than compensate for this.
Intensive fish farming involves a high level of inputs and stocking the ponds with as many fish as
possible. The fish are fed supplementary feed, while natural food production plays a minor role. In this
system, difficult management problems can arise caused by high fish stocking densities (increased
susceptibility to diseases and dissolved oxygen shortage). The high production costs force one to fetch
a high market price in order to make the fish farm economically feasible.
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Pond Culture
The vast majority of freshwater fish are raised in ponds. Water is taken from a lake, bay, well or other
natural source and is directed into the pond. The water either passes through the pond once and is
discharged or it may be partially replaced so that a certain percentage of the total water in a system is
retained and recirculated. However, the pond systems yielding the highest fish production, only replace
water evaporation and seepage losses and do not flow through. In general, water flowing reduces the
production of pond systems in the tropics.
Fish farming ponds range in size from a few dozen square meters to several hectares (ha). Small
ponds are normally used for spawning and baby fish production, while larger ponds are used for the
grow-out period. The kind of pond a farmer will build depends very much on local resources, equipment
and conditions.
Ponds are usually located on land with a gentle slope. They are rectangular or square-shaped, have
well-finished dikes and do not collect run-off water from the surrounding watershed. It is important that
sufficient water is available to fill all the ponds within a reasonable period of time and to maintain the
same pond water level.
Table 2.1 Characteristics of a good pond for fish farming
Location Select land with a gentle slope, taking advantage of existing land contours.
Construction Ponds may be dug into the ground; they may be partly above or below original
ground level. Slopes and bottom should be well packed during construction to
prevent erosion and seepage. Soil should contain a minimum of 25% clay.
Rocks, grass, branches and other undesirable objects should be eliminated
from the dikes.
Pond depth Depth should be 0.5-1.0 m at shallow end, sloping to 1.5-2.0 m at the drain
end.
Configuration Best shape for ponds is rectangular or square.
Side slopes Construct ponds with 2:1 or 3:1 slopes on all sides.
Drain Gate valves, baffle boards or tilt-over standpipes should be provided. Draining
should take no more than 3 days.
Inflow lines Inflow lines should be of sufficient capacity to fill each pond within 3 days. If
surface water is used, the incoming water should be filtered to remove
undesirable plants or animals.
Total water volume Sufficient water should be available to fill all ponds on the farm within a few
weeks and to keep them full throughout the growing season.
Dikes Dikes should be sufficiently wide enough to allow mowing. Dike roads should
be made of gravel. Grass should be planted on all dikes.
Locate ponds carefully to take advantage of water mixing by the wind. In
areas where wind causes extensive wave erosion of dikes, place long sides of
pond at right angles to the prevailing wind. Use hedge or tree wind breaks
where necessary.
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Different Pond Types
Depending on the site, there are two different types of fish ponds to choose from: diversion or barrage
ponds.
Diversion Ponds
Diversion ponds (Illustration 2.2) are constructed by bringing water from another source to the pond.
Illustration 2.2. Diversion pond: A: stream, B: water intake, C: diversion canal, D: inlet, E: outlet (Bard et
al., 1976)
Below are the different types of diversion ponds (Illustration 2.3):
A. Embankment ponds: The dikes of an embankment pond are built above ground level. A
disadvantage of this type of pond is that you may need a pump to fill the pond.
B. Excavated ponds: An excavated pond is dug out of the soil. The disadvantage of this type is
that you need a pump to drain the pond.
C. Contour ponds: Soil from digging out the pond is used to build the low dikes of the pond. The
ideal site has a slight slope (1-2%) so the water supply channel can be constructed slightly
above and the discharge channel slightly below the pond water level. Since natural gravity is
used to fill and drain the ponds, no pump is needed.
9Illustration
| P a g e2.3. Different types of diversion ponds (Viveen et al., 1985) A: embankment pond B: excavated pond; C: contour
pond.1. Pump, 2. Drainage canal, 3. Inlet pipe, 4. Diversion canal, 5. Overflow pipe
Barrage Ponds
Barrage ponds (Illustration 2.4) are constructed by building a dike across a natural stream. The ponds
are therefore like small conservation dams with the advantage that they are easy to construct. However,
it is very difficult to control this system: it is difficult to keep wild fish out and a lot of feed added to the
pond will be lost because of the current. A properly built barrage pond overflows only under unusual
circumstances.
Illustration 2.4: Barrage pond. A: stream, B: inlet, C: dam, D: outlet pipe, E: spillway and overflow, F: monk (One of the most common
pond draining structures. It consists of a vertical tower with boards to regulate the water level; a pipeline to discharge the water; and a
screen to prevent farmed fish from escaping the pond)
Although fish farming in ponds is the most common method of fish farming in the tropics, there are
some other methods used in places where it is not possible to construct ponds.
Cage Culture
In many parts of the world, the only water available is flowing water or large water bodies where it is
difficult to divert water into a pond. In these waters, it is possible to grow fish in small cages. Cage
culture can also be practiced in swampy areas.
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The best place for a cage is a sunny place, near your
home, in deep water where gentle water currents and
winds bring clean water into the cage. Cages are also used
in ponds for keeping fish between harvest and selling time.
Sometimes cages are used as breeding tanks.
Advantages of growing fish in cages are:
cages are easy and cheap to build;
cages can be owned and maintained in groups;
fish in cages are easy to stock and feed;
fish grow fast in cages;
cages are easy to harvest.
Illustration 2.5. Floating cage (FAO, 1995)
Pens
Fish can also be grown in pens inside lakes or offshore areas (Illustration 2.6). Pens are constructed
from bamboo or wooden poles that are forced down into the lake or shore bottom. Then nets are strung
from pole to pole to form an enclosure. The nets are anchored into the lake bottom with weights or
sinkers and the fish are stocked inside the pen.
Fish pens measuring the size of a fish pond and placed in fertile lakes can yield a high fish production.
They do not require extra feeding or fertilization and need very little maintenance. The fish are stocked
and harvested at the end of the growing season.
Fly Fishing
Fly Fishing Rods are long, thin, flexible rods sometimes made of bamboo, but more recently from man-
made materials.
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Application
Assessment
In your own view, how does fish farming increase production? (10 points)
Rubrics:
Description 5 3 2 1
Content Very informative Somewhat Gives some Was not able to give
and well informative and information but some information and
organized organized poorly organized poorly organized
Grammar No grammatical Few spelling and A number of So many spelling,
usage/spelling errors (spelling punctuation errors, spelling, punctuation and
and punctuation) minor grammatical punctuation or grammatical errors
errors grammatical that it interferes with
errors the meaning
Closure
Good job learner! Should there be some parts of the lesson which you need clarification, please
message your instructor directly.
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Lesson III Planning a Fish Farm
Learning Outcomes
Introduction
Hello learner! Lesson 3 gives basic guidelines for setting up a fish farm and covers the selection of a
proper site, of farm type and of fish species to be cultured.
Activity
Do you know some types of fish? Great! Let’s have an activity. Complete the crossword puzzle below.
(10 points)
1)
2) 3)
4)
5)
6) 7)
8)
Down Across
1. an aquarium fish which has a scientific name of 1. one of the world's most widely distributed tropical fish
Carassius auratus and one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish
2. this fish is mostly found in lake species
5. popular as a food with a mild flavour and a dense, 2. a deep-bodied freshwater fish, typically with barbells
flaky, white flesh. around the mouth
7. has a high content of omega-3 3. an African freshwater cichlid fish that has been
widely introduced to many areas for food
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milky white bottom
Analysis
If you are going to put up an aquaculture enterprise, what type of fish do you want to raise and why?
(10 points)
Rubrics:
Description 10 7 5 3
Content Very informative Somewhat Gives some Was not able to give
and well informative and information but some information and
organized organized poorly organized poorly organized
Grammar No grammatical Few spelling and A number of So many spelling,
usage/spelling errors (spelling punctuation errors, spelling, punctuation and
and punctuation) minor grammatical punctuation or grammatical errors
errors grammatical that it interferes with
errors the meaning
Abstraction
Introduction
Land, water and climatic conditions are probably the most important natural factors that need to be
assessed. When developing a site for fish farming you should consider the effect it may have on the
environment. Important natural areas (e.g. fish nursery grounds like mangrove forests) should not be
used for fish farming.
One of the most essential requirements is water availability, in terms of quality and quantity. The type of
aquaculture farm and species of animals or plants that you will be able to culture will depend largely on
the properties of the site.
The risks involved in fish farming should also be stressed. Fish need protein in order to grow and
reproduce. This means they can become competitors for products, which could otherwise be used
directly for human consumption. Furthermore, the cost of production is fairly high and therefore fish
grown in ponds are not always able to compete financially with fish caught in the wild.
Setting up a fish farm involves high initial investment and high production costs as well as economic
risks. Therefore, there are some very important factors a prospective fish farmer should consider before
embarking on a fish farming venture (see Illustration 3.1). For example:
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1. Gathering information:
Future fish farmers can often get
assistance with starting up a fish farming
enterprise in the form of technical advice
from extension services. In some cases
even financial support is provided.
2. Finance:
A cost estimate should include the cost
of land as well as capital expenditures for
fish stock, pond construction, labor,
production and harvesting.
3. Site:
The soil must be able to retain water.
Good water quality and sufficient quantity
should be available at a reasonable cost.
The site should be close to home and
potential losses from stealing should be
estimated. The ownership of the land, as
well as the state or federal permits
required, should be known and obtained.
The site and roads should be passable
and not subject to flooding. Illustration 3.1 Setting up a Fish Farm
4. Fish stock:
You need to decide whether to breed your own fish stock or purchase it from others. If you plan to buy
from others you must have a reliable source of good quality fish stock. If you choose to breed on-site,
then you must have adequate space for maintenance of brood stock and production of young fish.
5. Production:
Will the feed available for the selected fish species match this species preferences?
6. Harvesting:
Enough people should be available to harvest the fish. Find out what is the most economical method for
harvesting. You may need storage facilities for harvested fish.
7. Consumption:
Will the fish be used for your own consumption or for selling?
Site Selection
Proper selection of a site is probably the most important factor for success. However, if the ideal site is
not available, you may have to compromise. There may also be conflicts concerning land and water use
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that need to be resolved. You should decide on which species to raise, based on the available feeds
(e.g. agricultural by-products) and possible fertilizers (e.g. compost or animal manure).
Site selection will depend on the type of fish farm you plan to run. For pond construction you need to
consider the following factors: soil type and quality and quantity of the water available.
Soil
The quality of soil influences both water quality and productivity in a pond. The soil must also be
suitable for dike construction. To determine soil suitability the two most important properties to examine
are soil texture (particle size composition), and porosity or permeability (ability to let water pass
through). The pond bottom must be able to hold water (have a low porosity, like clay) and the soil
should also contribute to the fertility of the water by providing nutrients. The best soil for pond
construction should contain a lot of clay. The three methods one should follow to predict whether the
soil will be suitable for pond construction are:
1. The ‘squeeze method’
2. The ground water test
3. The water permeability test
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Water
The availability of good water quality is significant for all fish farming systems but water quantity is of
even greater importance for land based fish farming systems. A constant water supply is needed, not
only to fill the pond, but also to make up for the losses caused by seepage and evaporation (Figure 6.5)
Illustration 3.5: Water supply and water loss in a fish pond a: inlet, b: overflow, c: evaporation, d: seepage
Water Temperature
Water temperature is an important condition in assessing whether the fish species selected can be
raised. A water temperature between 20 °C and 30 °C is generally good for fish farming.
Water Salinity
Variation in water salinity (amount of dissolved salts in the water) is also an important factor to consider.
Some fish species can withstand a wider salinity range than others: e.g. tilapia and catfish can
withstand a wide range from freshwater to seawater, while carp can only withstand freshwater.
These are the most important water quality criteria for site selection. There are other important water
quality characteristics, but these are more easily controlled by management measures (for example,
dissolved oxygen, pH, etc.)
Other sluice is used for draining out water from the culture plot to the feeder canal at low tide periods
for water exchange
When selecting fish species suitable for farming, various important biological and economic factors
need to be considered:
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1. market price and demand (not when fish are produced for own consumption)
2. growth rate
3. ability to reproduce in captivity
4. simple culture of the young fish
5. match between available fish feeds and the food preference of the selected fish
species
It will often be possible to choose from locally occurring species and to avoid the introduction of exotic
ones for culture. The most important biological characteristics determine the suitability of a species for
culture under local conditions.
Although certain slow-growing species may be candidates for culture because of their market value, it is
often difficult to make their culture profitable. It is better that they reach marketable size before they
attain maturity, thus ensuring that most of the feed is used for muscle growth instead of reproduction.
Early maturity, on the other hand, ensures easier availability of young fish.
If you do not intend to breed fish yourself you may have to depend on fingerling (young fish) supply
from the wild. This is generally an unreliable source, as the fingerling quantities caught from the wild
vary greatly from moment to moment. This is due to the fact that natural fish reproduction depends on
unpredictable biological factors (water temperature, food availability, etc.). It is better to select fish
species that can be easily reproduced by yourself, or species that can be bought from the fish market or
from a reliable fish supplier, fish culture station or fish culture extension service.
In fish farming, feeding costs are generally the most important in the total cost of production. Therefore,
plant-eating (herbivorous) or plant- and animal-eating (omnivorous) fish species are preferable as they
feed on natural food resources occurring in the pond. The cost of feeding these species will be
relatively low. Carnivorous (predatory) fish species, on the other hand, need a high protein diet and are
therefore more expensive to produce. To compensate for higher feeding costs, however, most
carnivorous species fetch higher market prices.
Raising different fish species together in one pond (polyculture) will produce a higher fish production
than from raising fish species separately (monoculture).
Monoculture – Only one fish species is raised in the pond. An advantage of monoculture is that,
as there is only one fish species to consider with regard to food preference, it is easier to give
certain supplementary feed to the fish.
Polyculture – More than one fish species are raised in the fish pond. This way, the various
natural food resources in the pond are better utilized. Each fish species has a certain feed
preference, which is related to the position of the fish in the pond.
There are a number of different cultured fish species in the tropics, the most common fish species
raised are salmon, tilapia, catfish and tuna.
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Catfish
Catfish are easy to farm in warmer climates. Catfish
Illustration 3.6 Catfish are predominantly farmed in fresh water ponds and
fed mostly soybeans, corn and rice. Catfish are often considered one of the more sustainable fish
specifies for fish farming purposes. Cultivating catfish first began in the 1900s and became
commercialized in the 1950s. Catfish is populous because of its health benefits and market demand.
Farm-raised catfish are usually harvested at 18 months of age where as wild catfish usually get much
bigger. There are a number of catfish species, but the three most prominent ones are blue catfish,
channel catfish, and flathead catfish.
Tilapia
Tilapia is a fish that is ideally suited to
polyculture under poor environmental conditions
and/or when pond management is of low priority.
Tilapias are hardy fish, able to withstand extreme
Illustration 3.7 Tilapia
water temperatures and low levels of dissolved
oxygen. They have increased in popularity due to
their high protein, large size and growth capabilities. Tilapia is a tropical fish that requires warmer water
to survive. The ideal water temperature is usually between 28 to 30 degrees C. Tilapia fish are known
to reproduce rapidly and this is a challenge for managing tilapia fish species for farming use. If not
managed properly, fish will aggressively compete for food which may result in stunted growth.
Therefore, males are almost used exclusively. Tilapias are resilient towards fighting off diseases and
parasites. Tilapia fish farming originated in Africa and is popular in Honduras, Papua New Guinea,
Philippines and Indonesia. Tilapia fish require a cereal-based diet and don’t eat other fish, but they are
also considered to be one of the most invasive fish species.
Salmon
Salmon is one of the most popular fish
species with the most commonly farmed being
Atlantic salmon. There are two other varieties of
Pacific salmon that are also farmed – Chinook
and Coho. Farmed salmon are vaccinated to
Illustration 3.8 Salmon
prevent disease outbreaks and only on rare
occasions do they require additional medications.
There are often questions about the different colors between wild and farmed salmon – farmed salmon
aren’t dyed, their color comes from their food. Salmon feed is made to conserve wild fish stocks.
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Tuna Fish
Tuna fish are saltwater fish and are important in the commercial fish farming industry. Japan is
the biggest consumer of tuna and has invested a significant amount of research into studying the fish.
There are different species of tuna including, blue fin, yellowfin, and albacore. Bluefin tuna populations
have dropped significantly in some regions due to over fishing. Farming tuna is complex as the fish are
“massive” and are very active - so simulating their
natural environment is extremely difficult. Most tuna
for human consumption are caught in the wild and
raised in a facility to increase weight gain. Tuna are
carnivorous and eat other fish. Tuna are typically
farmed in net pens offshore and in some cases are
Illustration 3.9 Tuna Fish farmed in recirculation systems.
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Application
Please write the correct answer on the space before the number. (10 points)
____________1. More than one fish species are raised in the fish pond.
____________2. Only one fish species is raised in the pond.
____________3. Able to withstand extreme water temperatures and low levels of dissolved oxygen.
____________4. It is an important condition in assessing whether the fish species selected can be
raised.
____________5. Often considered one of the more sustainable fish specifies for fish farming purposes.
Assessment
Look for an established fish farm in the Philippines, write a brief background and list down the fish
species they are growing. (10 points)
Rubrics:
Description 5 3 2 1
Content Very informative Somewhat Gives some Was not able to give
and well informative and information but some information and
organized organized poorly organized poorly organized
Grammar No grammatical Few spelling and A number of So many spelling,
usage/spelling errors (spelling punctuation errors, spelling, punctuation and
and punctuation) minor grammatical punctuation or grammatical errors
errors grammatical that it interferes with
errors the meaning
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Closure
Congratulations for a job well done! We hope that you have learned a lot from this module.
Module Summary
Reference
Assiah, E., Ton, S., Aldin, H. (2004) Small-scale freshwater fish farming (2nd Edition) Agromisa
Foundation and CTA, Wageningen
https://www.farms.com/farming/fish-farms.aspx
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