Ten years into the twenty-first century, the earth’s population is approaching 6.8 billion people. Finding enough food for that number of humans is a worldwide issue and aquaculture is one solution to that dilemma.

Aquaculture is a form of agriculture and can be thought of as the controlled growth of marine organisms, mostly for human consumption. But instead of crops such as corn, wheat and soybeans, or livestock such as cattle, pork and chicken, the end product is aquatic species like fish, shrimp, mollusks and algae.

Stating the obvious, humans need to eat to survive, but the human body needs a consistent supply of protein to maintain optimum health and bodily functions. Throughout human history, fish and seafood have provided that supply of protein. Seafood was looked to as that source of protein long before humans turned to growing cattle or chicken.

In addition to a healthy supply of protein, people view seafood as an enjoyable alternative to their regular diets. Eating shrimp, crab or lobster, for example, is viewed as a special occurrence, associated with holidays as a treat for those it is not normally available to.

For all those reasons, wild or natural populations of aquatic species cannot meet the demand of the current human population. Aquaculture, then, is the practice required to meet that demand and humans are needed to manage the resultant industry. The list of jobs required is just as lengthy as similar industries in the agricultural field. From growing the species, to researching better methods or developing government regulations on farming fish, a number of different careers are available in the aquaculture industry. Read the rest of this entry »

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Florida aquaclultured rocks are undeniably beautiful. Including aqaucultured live rocks in your saltwater aquarium will not only improve the ascetics and natural look of your habitat, but they also improve your water quality. Aquacultured live rocks are a great asset to many saltwater aquarium enthusiasts. The marine life contained within the live rocks filter many pollutants out of the water and help to keep nitrate levels in check. Here is a list of some of the flora and fauna you may find in aquacultured live rocks.

Algae: There are many different kinds of algae that one may find. These saltwater plants supply aquariums with food for some species of fish as well as a beautiful range of colors. Algae also provide a saltwater aquarium with natural nitrate removal.

Anemones: These saltwater invertebrates are filter feeders which will remove unwanted excess from polluting your saltwater aquarium. They come in a number of different shapes, sizes and colors. They add a great deal of natural beauty to a saltwater aquarium but some species can overtake a tank if not properly maintained.

Coral: Live rocks may be covered with many different species of corals which all coexist on one rock. Live rocks are the home to many different species of coral. These filter feeders survive on plankton and other forms of microscopic food. The beautiful designs they form are actually the skeletal remains of previous generations of coral which are now the home of their offspring. Read the rest of this entry »

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Where ponds are used for aquaculture, wastewater contamination in such ponds poses risk to human health. This article takes a close look at 5 principal contaminants.

A number of human excreted helminthic fecal pathogens, when released to aquaculture wastewater contaminated ponds can involve pathogen contamination of the fish or aquatic plants and their use as intermediate hosts. Strauss (1985) has listed the following trematode infections as being capable of transmission in this way:

1. Clonorchis
2. Heterophys
3. Opistorchis
4. Metagonimus
5. Diphyllobothrium

However, he indicated that only clonorchiasis (liver fluke) and the closely related pistorchiasis have been transmitted through fish, grown in excreta-fertilized ponds or whenever there is aquaculture wastewater contamination. The first phase of development of these pathogens occurs in specific snails or copepods (minute crustaceans), with fish acting as a second intermediate host.

These helminthic infections caused as a result of feces contamination, have significant public health importance in Asia, where fish are sometimes eaten raw. Strauss also pointed out that the helminthic pathogens fasciola (sheep and cattle liver flukes) and fasciolopsis (giant intestinal fluke) have the same pattern of life cycle, but depend on aquatic plants, such as water chestnut, water Read the rest of this entry »

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