I ,... - , l ) SHRIMP FARMING by Donald M. Allen CONTENTS Page Introduction•••...•••.•.. 1 General life history of shrimp 2 Culture methods ••...•.•. 2 Pond site and construction ••.•••••.•.•••.•••.•. 2 Preparation for stocking••..•.•.•.•...•..••...•....•. 2 Acquisition of seed shrimp ••..••.•.... .• .•••.•....•.. 3 Management of the shrimp crop •.•.•...• • •.•.•...•.• • .. 4 Harvest •••••••••.•.•••• 4 Recommendations •••••••.••.•....•.•.••••... .•. •.•.• 5 Conclusions. • . • . • . • . • . • • • • • . • . • ... ••. 6 Bibliography .••.•••••.•.••• .•.•••.•.•• ..• .•....••. 6 INTRODUCTION estuarine waters. By constructing ponds, the shrimp farmer alters t he natural en­ The idea of shrimp farming, or cultiva­ vironment so t hat the poundage of shrimp tion of shrimp under controlled conditions normally harvested from the estuarine in salt- or brackish-water ponds, has areas is greatly increased. It is antici­ aroused much interest in the United States pated that by prope r timing, a shrimp in recent years. Shrimp appear particularly farmer may control the development of desirable for artificial cultivation because his stocks, so that abundant live bait shrimp of their rapid growth and high market of appropriate size can be harvested at the value. The ex-vessel value of shrimp to peak of demand. United States fishermen in 1962 was $73 million for the 191 million pounds landed. The culture of shrimp and other marine In addition to their worth as human food, animals is an important industry in cer­ shrimp are in great demand seasonally as tain maritime coun tries of Southeast Asia. live bait for sport fishing. Shrimp farming in t he United States is still in its infancy, however, and extensive re­ Methods used in shrimp farming take search i s required to determine its biologi­ advantage of the ability of certain shrimp c al and economic feas ibility. to survive and grow rapidly in shallow lContribution No. 166. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries This leaflet giyes an account of shrimp Biological Laboratory. Galveston. Tex. culture as it i s practiced in Southeast Asia and suggests possible applic a tlOn of Note,--Donald M. Allen. Fishery Biologist, Bureau of Com­ mercial Fisheries Biological Laboratory. U.s. Fish and Wild­ techniques developed t here to shrimp farm ­ life Service. Galveston. Texas. ing in the United States. GENERAL LIFE HISTORY OF SHRIMP action provldes the needed water exchange. Areas where salinity is only slightly less The majority of shrimp cultivated in than that of sea water are preferred. The salt-water ponds in the Far East are soil is usually clay with a mixture of sand mar in e shrimp which inhabit s hallow, and 0 r g ani c detritus. Experience has bracki sh estuaries during a large porbon of demonstrated that ponds constructed in their lives. They are well adapted to this regions of excessive fresh water or with environment and can tolerate considerable s andy substrate are poor producers. change in salimty and temperature. A generalized account of their life history Salt marshes, shallow lagoons, and man­ will suffice for most of the .:;pecies with grove swamps a re converted into shrimp which we are concerned here . ponds by exc avatlon and dikmg. In Japan, a bandoned solar-salt beds have been con­ Female shrimp spawn their eggs freely verted to modern shnmp reanng ponds. ln the ocean, each releasing several hundred A pond system used m the Phihppmes (fig. l) thousand eggs. After hatching and whlle conslsts of £lve main sectlOns, separated by passing through several larval stages, the dlkes- -two nursery ponds, two rearing tmy shrimp move toward the coast. Upon ponds, and a catch pond. The tops ofthe dikes entenng the shallow and brackish mshore are about 20 .nches above the maXimum ex­ waters, the young shrimp sEttle to the pected tlde heights. SlUlce gates connect bottom and grow rapldly. As maturation the catc h pond to a bdal stream and also approache s, they gradually move offshore to the rearmg ponds and nurseries, so that toward the spawning grounds m the ocean water may be exchanged. Wate r level and and the life cycle is repeated. Depending movement are controlled by bdal flow and upon the species, the hfe span may range adjustable drawboards m the sluice gates. from about 1 to 3 years and the maXlmum The entire pond unlt slopes toward the size in terms of length, from about 4 to 12 main sluice gate so that all sectlOns can, inches. 1£ necessary, be drained at low t ide . Drain ­ age is fac litated by a system of d itches in Along the Gulf and South Atlantic coasts the pond bottom which lead to t h e mam of the Unlted States, there occur four sluice gate. ThiS particular pond system speCles of marine shrimp whlch may be covers about 25 acres . suita ble for pond culture. These a re the w h 1 t e (Penaeus seliferus), p 1 n k rP. duorarum) , ExtenSive estuanes along the Gulf and brown (P. aztecus), and Canbbean brown South Atlantic coasts of the Umted States (P.brasiliensis) shrimps, all similar in may also be sUltable for farmmg shrimp, appearance and habits to their relatives, although the cost of gaming control over the cultured shrimp 0_ Southeast Asia. such property will be prohibibve in certain These North Arneric ..... n shrimp live 1 to 2 areas. Excluding the cost of leasing or years and reach a size of about 9 inches. purchasing suitable property, the cost of pond construction m the United States may In addition to marine shrimp, the southern range from $35 to $600 per acre, I depend­ United States has several species of large ing upon the size of the project and local river shrimp ('rfacTobrachium spp.) that should conditions. be considered for pond culture. These shrimp are generally found m fresh or brackish water. The eggs are not released Preparation for Stocking directly into the water but remain attached Before a nursery pond in the Philippine s to the underside of the "tail" of the female is stocked with shrimp fry, it i s drained, until they hatch into young shrimp. cleaned, thoroughly sun dried, and then refilled with 1 to 3 inches of tide wate r that has been screened to prevent entry of CULTURE METHODS undesirable organisms. Besides eliminating most predators, this entire process serves Pond Site and Construction to enc our age the growth of "lab -lab," a Philippine term for a complex mass o f In Southeast Asia, shrimp farms are small bottom-dwelling plant and animal constructed in shallow, brackish, estuarine areas where shrimp occur naturally. The llnformation concerning pond construction costs may be found ponds are situated in suc h a way that tidal in an addendum to Lunz, 1958. 2 \ ' , / , / \ / , \ / , / \ \ / , / / , I / / 1 \ , \ / , 1 / "- \ / ..... / \ / / "- 1 R \ E A R I N G / P N D R E A R I " , N G P N / D \ / , / ° / \ ..... ° / , I \ / "- I \ / , / \ , I / I \ I \ 1 \ N U R S E R Y S " 1 / ON D \ - DI KE o \ \ I.::; I \ /.,. OII(E- ~\I ; , I , III %\1 ~ \ ~ :;, ~\ , x 1 I" '::' 0' 1 '-' 0\ I, ~ = 19~ -~ \ 01, •'" ~ 0 ~ I 1 Q" ~\ DIKE - , . ., -DI~E , U' \ 2 --, , ~I .-" - 1 . /' /-- ....... \ , .0 :, / "- 0,1 .----- / ..... / "- ..... \ , '/ / \ I' "- ~ 1 \ I \ / 1 \ I \ / I , ~.~ I \ I " / \ / I ..... / \ I \ I , -----)=t - CATCH PON D t SLUICE--- -GATES \ 1\ TID AL STREAM SCALE ~- ~ ~ FEEf o SC ')n 300 Figure 1.--Layout of Philippine shrimp pond. (After Delmendo and Rabanal. 1956). life which is a prime source of food for young shrimp entering the estuary from young shrimp . After a good growth of the sea will be swept into the pond. When "lab-lab" is established, the water depth the tide turns, t he sluic e gate is screened, is increased to about 12 inches, and the thus retaining the young shrimp in the s eed shrimp are introduced. pond. This process m a y be repeated on each tide. Of cou rse, many other marine The shrimp grow from juvenile to adult organisms, some objec tionable, are intro­ stage in a large rearing pond. Prior to duc ed into the pond with the shrimp when being stocked with juvenile shrimp from the this method is used. nursery pond, the rearing pond is drained, cleaned, and dried before refilling to a Neither method described above supplies depth of 3 to 4 feet with s c reened tide­ a cons i stently adequate supply of seed water. shrimp. The most highly developed methods of shrimp culture are those now practiced Acquisition of Seed Shrimp in Japan, where kuruma shrimp (P. japonicu s) To obtain a successful harvest of shrimp, are reared from egg to adult stage under it is necessary that the pond be adequately closely c ontrolled conditions. Although de­ stocked. Consequently, much effort is di­ tails are lacbng, the process may be rect ed toward the critic al problem of ob­ described generally. Eggs obtained from taining a supply of seed shrimp (fry). captive spawnin"g shrimp hatch and develop into larvae in a hatching tank. Since spe­ In the Philippines and Formos a, clusters cial food is required by certain larval o f mar ine plants are strung across tidal stages of the shrimp, minute marine c reek s and shallow bays. The young shrimp organisms, including diatoms, are arti­ enterin g the estuaries from the sea gat her ficially cultured and fed to the tiny shrimp On t h e plants, from which they are netted at this time. Upon completion of the last at intervals . These f ry a r e transported to larval stage, the young shrimp are trans­ n urseries in earthenware containers. ferred to a nursery tank. Thus, in Japan, the problem of obtaining a reliable supply N urseries are not used where seed s h rimp of seed shrimp has apparently been solved.