Sarah Betbeze 7/10/13

 Rachycentron canadum  Family Rachycentridae courtesy NOAA

 Top producing countries: China and Taiwan Province of China (P.C.)  Taiwan P.C.  Production costs = ~$2.20/kg in 2001  Market value is based on size  7.7 kg (17 lbs.) or more $5.50/kg in 2004 for whole fish  Taiwan keeps 8-10 kg cobia and sells them whole.  6-8 kg cobia are sent to Japan.  Fillets usually sent to other countries  Other countries where cobia aquaculture occurs:  Bahamas, Belize, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Philippines, Puerto Rico, USA, and Vietnam

 Egg larva juvenile adult  Spawning season in G.O.M. = April through September  Every 9-12 days, times  Dispense eggs and sperm into the water; fertilization occurs  Larvae hatch ~24-36 hours following fertilization  Day 30 – Juvenile already has markings and coloration of adult cobia  Age during first spawning season  Males ---- about 1-2 yrs old  Females ---- about 2-3 yrs old

 Broodstock caught in wild during normal spawning season  Spawning  Can be stimulated in 2 ways:  Hormones  Controlling photoperiod and water temperature

 Hatcheries, nurseries, and grow-out cages employed  Larvae raised in “greenwater” nursery ponds  Until day 20  Days  Introduced to buoyant, pelleted food; reach 2-5g  Days  Moved to bigger ponds; reach 30g  Days /180  Moved to even bigger ponds or near-shore cages where they reach lbs.  Moved to grow-out cages  lbs.

 Favorite dish: swimming crabs  Opportunistic carnivores  Fish, crab, shrimp, squid  Taiwan P.C.  Feed cobia sinking and buoyant pellets  6 days a week Blue crab --- naturelssi.com Squid ---- dpi.nsw.gov.au Shrimp fishwatch.gov Cobia ---- seasquaredcharters.com

 Dissolved Oxygen  At least 5ppm (mg/L)  pH  When spawning ~7.8  Water temperature  >79 degrees Fahrenheit (26 degrees Celsius)

 Pros  Quick growth rate  Good FCR  Fantastic flesh quality  Limited wild population  Can handle a large variety of salinities  Cons  Difficult to obtain trash fish to feed them  Pond cultures have potential to cause water quality problems & excess nutrient loading in the outflowing water  Prone to diseases

 Bester, Cathleen. "FLMNH Ichthyology Department: Cobia." FLMNH Ichthyology Department: Cobia. Florida Museum of Natural History, n.d. Web. 01 July  Kaiser, Jeffrey B., and Joan Holt. "Species Profile: Cobia." Southern Regional Aquaculture Center, Aug Web. June  Perschbacher, Peter, Dr. "Rachycentridae." Rachycentridae. Aquaculture/Fisheries Center, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, n.d. Web. 06 July  "Rachycentron Canadum." FAO Fisheries & Aquaculture Department. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Web. June