Some Aquaculture/Aquaponics news

Daniel

An interesting find on yabby research, and a possibility of feed prices increasing...

These two articles are from

http://www.austasiaaquaculture.com.au/

WORLD FISHMEAL CRISIS
The predictions Australian aquacultural scientists made ten years ago have
been realised, with fishmeal prices exploding from US$600 per tonne a year
ago to US$1500. The Australians warned of a world shortfall in feed
availability and a resultant price spike. In August there was a
masterclass meeting of feed experts and other scientists in Thailand to
canvas issues surrounding fish feeds and the problem of supply. CSIRO
aquaculture nutritionist Kevin Williams observed that the finite limit to
the availability of feed material sourced from wildstock fish meal had
been reached for more than 10 years, and that Australian scientists had
been working on alternative feeds for 10 years. However, Dr Geoff Allan of
the Department of Primary Industries NSW pointed out that while some Asian
farmers could possibly pay for commercial feeds, most couldn't. The
masterclass noted that in the circumstances most farmers needed access to
information on how to make best use of the ingredients available.
Australia has a renowned group of scientists dedicated to addressing the
problem of feeds, and these people made their knowledge available at the
meeting, providing information on combining materials, pellet production,
and minimising waste during stock feeding. It's hoped the outcomes of the
meeting will lead to development of a three-day program which can be
delivered to people in many Asian regions.
Source: Brydon Coverdale in Stock & Land (7/9/2006).

WHAT YABBIES REALLY WANT
Karen Willows is an Honours student at the University of New England.
She's conducted research showing that yabbies grow just as quickly on a
diet containing 20 per cent protein as they do on a more expensive diet
including 30 per cent protein. Ms Willows has also discovered that yabbies
reared in cages in outdoor ponds fare better than those reared in similar
cages in temperature-controlled indoor aquaria. Importantly, those kept
outside grew faster than those kept in tanks. She found these outcomes to
be unexpected. Working under the supervision of Senior Lecturer Dr Ian
Godwin, Karen monitored the growth of 196 juvenile yabbies - Cherax
destructor - over two months. She bred the animals and conducted the
experiments at the CSIRO Livestock Industries' FD McMaster Laboratory near
Armidale.
Source: Gary Fry and Danieli Studios in the Armidale Independent
(13/9/2006).

beeso

very interesting..

purrsikat

Ooh, very interesting indeed... Thanks for posting. Good to read what's happening around & abouts.

creative1

I wonder if the variable temps force the destructor to work hard to stay healthy rather than wraping them in cotton wool as is what happens with kids these days and don't develop imune systems to combat illness.
Resulting in weak developement.
Just kinda chuck em outside and see what happens...
C1

renardv

I read time and time again about the lack of fish meal and then read about a noxious fish species and how they are trying to remove them from our waterways. In this case they are referring to Tilapia (Mozambique Mouth-brooder (Oreochromis mossambicus)).

Port Douglas pond in 1989 where FIVE (5) fish were released and turned into over one million fish (18 tonnes) in three years.

(Current fish meal value of 27,000 – pretty good return on investment for a small pond). That is about 173 per week. (Would nearly be cost effective to buy an investment property – knock down the house and build a large pond to keep your 5 Tilapia.

My question is this: Why can we not set up fish farms that farm Common or grass cap, Tilapia and may be some of the small native fish from the Lake Ayer basin that eat vegetation and use them for fish meal. We might just be able to use the vast resource available (And avoid the PCBs that have infested the imported fish meal).

On the note of fish laws in Australia – I would seriously question the impact of English Perch (Red Fin) and Brown/Rainbow Trout on the native fish and shellfish species before carp and Tilapia.

Aquaddict

Perhaps the yabbies chitin is dependent on uv algae for source material and without it must utilise other resources/nutrients/bodily functions in order to fill this gap. Or uv dependant macroinvertabrates. Perhaps a combination of both.

purrsikat

C1 - I believe that too (or something similar at least). Research on some mammals have shown that when they're under a small amount of stress (such as, such as fending for themselves, not recieving excessive amounts of food) their bodies would be at a higher level of immunity. Evidence showed that they lived (generally speaking) for longer than animals 'wrapped in cotton wool'. I've specifically seen/read about studies done on horses, rats & monkeys.. but have heard about other species as well.

There's also been research done into this & the human body - that the human body actually does better when very slightly underfed, rather than overfed, or fed copious amounts of food. (I heard this from my partner, who's a fitness instructor & does crazy research, like we all do here... just to do wtih the human body rather than fish, plants, grow medium etc :lol:

)

& on a personal note, I know I always get sick when I take time off work/life to relax! Just seems to be the way! :lol:

creative1

slight hijacking-Have always had the philosophy of the kids having a 'well' day off, rather than waiting for a 'sickie' to come along.
You don't have to be sick to take time off.
In fact having been an employer I made a point of arranging time off to
'relax' and catch up on life rather than the getting sick to prove time off is needed.
C1

Joyce

When I first read the article I was thinking on the lines of renardv, with the problem with the Tilapia in some areas, can they be caught with nets and used as food for the other fish that are in the systems, as long as they are eaten and not allowed to stay in a tank, with the laws saying you can't keep them. Would that be permitted?

Daniel

Good point. Why are we turning carp into fertilizer when it could be fish meal

Also when i read the yabby "news", i thought the better growth outside may be due to micro flora and fauna it might eat as well, as opposed to the pellet in the near sterile aquarium

purrsikat

I guess it depends on the influencing factors.. there are no specifics as to what kind of lighting was used (as close to 'sunlight' as possible, or something else?), was it a very sterile environment, or were they left to fend for themselves in the same manner indoors & outdoors, with no additional filtering, cleaning etc in the indoor model..

There are so many variables that can influence outcomes of any experiment, which is why I like to read more than just the summaries, if I can

Daniel

I found the full article on the yabbie info

http://www.armidaleindependent.com.au/p ... dent%20%22

do you want me to post the link of the other too if i can find it?

purrsikat

Thanks heaps Daniel, that's great.

If you can find it, that'd be useful!

I reckon a few people would be interested in reading more about all of it..

Daniel

couldnt find the fish meal article, but i found a diff one on the same thing

http://www.fishupdate.com/news/fullstor ... isis_.html

Daniel

Some more news of interest:

PROJECT TO DEVELOP ROOFTOP MICROFARMS
The Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation has awarded the
Central Queensland University (CQU) a $210,000 grant to research methods
of growing food on rooftops using organic waste. In the three-year
project, business models and operational manuals will be produced on
techniques for microfarming on the roofs of shopping malls, at rural
schools and in isolated communities. Organic waste from within 500 metres
will be used. Worms will convert wastes into nutrients to support organic
hydroponics and act as fish food for aquaculture. Fish waste will in turn
add to the worm liquor used in the hydroponics. The project has emerged
from CQU's Professor David Midmore and colleagues at Green Roofs for
Healthy Australian Cities.
Source: Waste Management & Environment (November 2006).

A $76,000 GRANT FOR PARNDANA CAMPUS
The Kangaroo Island Community Education Parndana Campus has received a
grant of more than $76,000 from the Federal Australian School Innovation
in Science, Technology and Mathematics Project, to assist with
establishment of a network of schools in its aquaponics and aquaculture
program. Information technology communications will be set up linking
campuses at Yankalilla, Penneshaw, Whyalla, Kingscote, Mt Compass, Hawker
and Moonta. There'll also be the capacity to allow Flinders University
students to visit the Island to share skills and receive encouragement to
become science teachers. The program will be coordinated by Skills Centre
Manager John Larkin.
Source: The Islander (16/11/2006).

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