1. Zoe Nichols Marine Aquaculture Dauphin Island Sea Lab

2. Taxonomy ● Kingdom: Animalia ● Phylum: Mollusca ● Class: Gastropoda ● Family: Haliotidae ● Genus: Haliotis ● Species:…

3. Species ● Haliotis asinina “Ass's Ear Abalone” South East Asia ● Haliotis rufescens “Red Abalone” California ● Haliotis discus “Disk Abalone” Japan ● Haliotis discus hannai “Japanese Abalone” Japan, Korea ● Haliotis diversicolor supertexta “Variouslly Coloured Abalone” Japan ● Haliotis fulgens “Green Abalone” Southern California ● Haliotis iris “Blackfoot Paua” New Zealand ● Haliotis kamtschatkana “Northern Abalone” California (endangered) ● Haliotis laevigata “Smooth Australian Abalone” Australia ● Haliotis midae “South African Abalone” South Africa ● Haliotis rubra “Blacklip Abalone”Australia ● Haliotis tuberculata “Green Ormer” Europe ● There are about 100 species (150 with hybrids) ● Large abalones → temperate zone, small abalone → tropics and the cold zones.

6. Species ● Haliotis asinina “Ass's Ear Abalone” South East Asia ● Haliotis rufescens “Red Abalone” California ● Haliotis discus “Disk Abalone” Japan ● Haliotis discus hannai “Japanese Abalone” Japan, Korea ● Haliotis diversicolor supertexta “Variouslly Coloured Abalone” Japan ● Haliotis fulgens “Green Abalone” Southern California ● Haliotis iris “Blackfoot Paua” New Zealand ● Haliotis kamtschatkana “Northern Abalone” California (endangered) ● Haliotis laevigata “Smooth Australian Abalone” Australia ● Haliotis midae “South African Abalone” South Africa ● Haliotis rubra “Blacklip Abalone”Australia ● Haliotis tuberculata “Green Ormer” Europe ● There are about 100 species (150 with hybrids) ● Large abalones → temperate zone, small abalone → tropics and the cold zones.

7. Why Aquaculture Abalone? ● In the last 20+ years abalone populations have declined – Commercial catch worldwide has declined from 18,000mt to a little over 10,000mt – (predation, loss of habitat, illegal harvesting) ● An entree of two 4-inch abalone steaks can cost $50-plus ● Purchased raw, smaller abalone (in-shell) costs $20 per pound; the price increases as the abalone size increases. ● Market locations: Korea, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, Southern Australia, New Zealand, United States of America, and China ● Shells are part of the jewelry industry cause they’re pretty

8. Abalone Life Cycle

9. Reproduction In Captivity... ● Spawning occurs mostly during the summer months and multiple events during one season are possible 1.Ultraviolet method 2. Desiccation method 3. Thermal shock method ● The eggs & sperm are released → fertilization – A 1.5 inch abalone may spawn 10,000 eggs or more at a time, while an 8 inch abalone may spawn 11 million or more. ● 24hrs later egg hatches (microscopic) → free living larvae ● A week later, it settles on the bottom = spat – Begins to develop into an adult

11. Production methods used: ● Juveniles are in controlled tanks and attached to setting boards ● When the juveniles reach 5–6 mm after 80 days → intermediate rearing tanks ● Intermediate culture period the abalones are reared up to 3 cm – (high density 3–5 kg/m2 and usually with a high survival rate) ● > 3cm  Land-based rearing tanks or in the sea

12. Production methods used: ● Land-based rearing tanks or in the sea ● The land-based method = easier management (artificial feed, electrical pumps, blowers) – Raised in concrete tanks with fresh sea water pumped in – Waste should be regularly removed- once a week at high temperatures, and once a fortnight at low temperatures ● IMTA- Israel – cultured marine fish, seaweeds, and Japanese abalone. ● The sea-based method uses rearing cage hung from a floating line or raft set at sea. – Affected by seasonal limitation of the environment/ density 2–3 kg/m2 – Dead organisms beneath the rearing tank should be removed and a good water flow provided

16. Feeds and Feeding ● The diatom plates → feed free-swimming stage after spawning – Larvae will settle on the plates and feed on the diatoms ● Abalone eat marine algae in the wild and on some farms – Abalone farming limited by the quality and quantity of the macroalgae sources worldwide ● Cultured abalone, many farms now use high quality manufactured food, which is healthy, efficient and produces very high quality meat. ● Juvenile abalone usually feed on benthic diatoms and small benthic organisms. ● At 13 mm long they feed on a great variety of seaweeds – Large brown algae such as giant kelp, bull kelp, feather boa kelp and elk kelp ● Young barnacles, bivalves and foraminiferans are also found in the stomach of abalones ● Feeding habits affected by temperature (20 °C is optimum)

19. How big can they get?

20. How to have happy abalone... ● Water temperature 20°C ● Salinity >30 ‰ ● Do >4 ppm ● Light intensity >3000 Lux ● NH4OH-N <5 ppb ● PH 8.0–8.3

21. Advantages Disadvantages ● Leave little or no negative environmental effects ● Low maintenance ● Can use high quality dried food ● Can use ocean water ● Sell meat and shells (60% weight) ● Live around 50 years ● Predators/ parasites if using cages in ocean ● 5-8 years to reach maturity ● A lot of natural food required- limiting ● Transfer of disease ● Unwanted species trans located with abalones