Tilapia Aquaculture – An Overview: Estrategias de Cultivo en Sistemas Intensivos Kevin Fitzsimmons University of Arizona, Professor World Aquaculture Society, Immediate Past-President American Tilapia Association, Sec./Tres. Pablo Gonzalez Alanis Universidad Autonoma de Tamaulipas, Professor World Aquaculture Society, Student Liaison Program Coordinator, Aquaculture TIES Hermosillo, Son. Mexico Dec. 2, 2005

Strategies F Where and how will you market your tilapia? F Which production system will you use? F Will you buy fingerlings or try to operate your own hatchery? F Which diet(s) will you use to feed your tilapia? F How will you harvest and process your fish? F How will you address environmental aspects?

Strategies for tilapia farming in Sonora 1. Determine market plan. A. Sell live to local markets B. Sell fresh whole or gutted to local restaurant or grocery C. Sell to established seafood wholesaler D. Sell into Mexican domestic markets E. Sell to international markets

Top prize for marketing !!! Local sales at Foro Acuicultura

Scenario 1. Hermosillo area with large existing farm and irrigation water F Integrate with existing infrastructure F Semi-intensive ponds and above ground tanks F Grow fingerlings with “greenwater” to supplement feed F Growout with complete formulated diet F May need greenhouse covers to maintain warm water and bird netting to protect fish F Select Nile tilapia fingerling source

Tilapia in ponds F Intensive recirculating ponds with aerators and settling pond

Tanks and ponds

Scenario 2. Integration with existing shrimp farm F Use red tilapia F Rear in cages in the shrimp ponds, or move water from tilapia pond to shrimp pond F Use a complete tilapia diet F Check frequently for parasites, use freshwater dip to remove parasites F Market through channels developed for shrimp

Tilapia-shrimp polyculture farms (Eritrea)

Tilapia production in outside ponds with shrimp in covered ponds (Ecuador)

Tilapia cages in shrimp ponds Shrimp Pond, Philippines Shrimp Pond, Thailand

Scenario 3. Small farm, limited water supply or limited discharge capacity F Outdoor recirculation system F Stock with Nile or red tilapia F Tank culture F Complete formulated diets F Discharge to crops and settling pond/wetland F Water supply to tanks is mix of new and recirculated water F May use greenhouse covers or bird netting

F Multiple small tanks F Settling ponds F Irrigate crops F Hydroponics / Aquaponics

Scenario 4. Access to large reservoir F Cage system F Stock with Nile or red tilapia F Complete floating diet F Move cages on regular basis and monitor impacts

Large cage farms

Effluents to crop irrigation

For Sonora - Integration of aquaculture and agriculture F Water pH reduced from 8.3 to 8.0 F Added 19.7 kg/ha N to 45 kg/ha used in standard fertilization schedule.

Results - Integration of aquaculture and agriculture F Contributed 2.6 kg/ha P to crop.

Plant height with Fish Effluent, Standard Fertilizer and Well Water

Feeding strategy F Juvenile fish are especially good at filter feeding phytoplankton. F Many hatcheries utilize greenwater culture F Juveniles also filter feed on small zooplankters (especially crustaceans) F Save money on juvenile feeds by partial nutrition from natural feed in juvenile ponds and tanks

Tilapia nutrition decisions F Natural herbivores and detritivores. F Opportunistic feeders grazing on algae and bacteria in production system. F Fry and fingerlings need high protein (50-40%) diet F Growout needs lower protein (32-28%) diet F “Organic” diets may be needed for “organic” buyers F Compare FCR to decide most efficient diet

Tilapia: Exotic species in Mexico F Introduced many years ago across all of Mexico F Became major biomass in many new reservoirs F Stocked into irrigation canals for weed control F Competes with some native cichlids (mojaras) F For sustainable aquaculture we should strive to reduce impacts

Environmental concerns F Exotic species that has been widely introduced F Further introductions should be reduced F Effluents from cage farms may contribute to eutrophication F Methytestosterone used in sex-reversal should not leave farm in effluents F Migratory and endangered birds are attracted to fish farms

Technologies to reduce externalities (escapees) F Further increase domestication F Reduce survival rate of escapees F More red skin varieties

Technologies to reduce externalities (effluents) F Nutrient dense feeds, to reduce effluents F Improved feed systems, reduce waste F Recover water and wastes for aquaponics or other irrigation F Reduce or eliminate MT use (mixed sex, cages, YY, hybrids, salt-water culture) F Remove effluent MT with carbon, UV, or ozone

Future Sonoran tilapia production F Integration with existing agriculture and shrimp aquaculture F Mix of large and small farm scenarios F Much of the marketing will be local F Will develop as a sustainable (environmentally and economically) enterprise