Bull Minnow Aquaculture Kaylee D’Aloise. Taxonomy Scientific Name: -Fundulus grandis Common Names:...
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Transcript of Bull Minnow Aquaculture Kaylee D’Aloise. Taxonomy Scientific Name: -Fundulus grandis Common Names:...
Bull Minnow Aquaculture
Kaylee D’Aloise
Taxonomy
Scientific Name:
-Fundulus grandis
Common Names:
-gulf Killifish
-mud minnows
-mudfish
-bullminnow
Economic Importance
Sold as live bait Mostly used to catch flounder, redfish, and speckled
trout
Prices are about $7-10/lb for wholesale and $12-20/lb for retail
Local bait dealers mostly rely on harvest of wild stock to supply market
Mostly grow experimentally still, other bait minnows are grown on much larger scales.
Life Cycle and Larval Stages
Little is known about larval cycle, but salinities of 5 to 40ppt result in better larval survival than higher or lower salinities.
As adults they spawn with the tidal cycles
They can live up to 4 years old, however rarely do because of predation and harvest
Live in shallow waters of oyster bars, salt marsh pool, bayous and tidal creeks
Females usually larger than males
Reproduction in Captivity
Spawn readily in captivity
Stocked in a 2:1 ratio of female to male
External fertilization
Spawn March to October but peak in March-April
Have adhesive eggs that attach to spawning mats
Water must be above 68 degrees Fahrenheit
Production Methods Used
Grown successfully in ponds in several southern coastal states
Most information comes from experimental facilities
Have been grown in RAS but good growth was hard to achieve with only artificial diets
Best production method is a three-phase systemSpawing pondHatching pondGrow-out pond
Phase 1 – Spawning Pond
Pond stocked at 10,000 per acre
2:1 ratio of female to male
Water needs to be 68 Degrees Fahrenheit
Spawning nets around edge of pond and suspended in water
After one week they are moved into the phase 2 pond
Phase 2 – Hatching Pond
Pond must be filtered before mats put in
Treat pond for insects
1.5 million eggs can be stocked per acre, of which you can expect 1 million fry from
Eggs hatch in 2-3 weeks
Once fish reach 900 – 1,500 per pound they are moved to phase 3 the grow-out pond
Phase 3 – Grow-out Pond
The time needed to produce a certain size fish depends on the stocking density, so depending on what the market needs depends how you stock phase 3 pond
Stocking at 50,000 fish per acre produces 2.5 inch minnows in 5 weeks, while 100,000 per acre takes more than 6 weeks
Stocking around 200,000 per acre gives little growth rate and can be used for holding fish over winter
When they reach market size they are harvested by either seining or pond draining
Bull minnow trap for harvest
Feeds and Feeding
Bull minnows are omnivores and feed on whatever is available
Fry are fed finely ground minnow meal that is 28-32% crude protein at 5 pounds per acre per day
Phase 3 fish are fed floating feed twice daily at 10% stocked weight per day
Every week the average weigh is taken and feed adjusted, after one week it is dropped to 5% and so on
Water Chemistry and Environmental Requirements in
CultureTolerant to wide range of water qualities
Minimum salinity recommended is 3-5 ppt, any lower could affect spawning and disease resistance
High stocking rates might need aerators, a DO level generally above 4.0mg/L
Ponds should average 3 feet deep with smooth bottoms
Ponds free of aquatic vegetation
Advantages and Disadvantages
AdvantagesVery tolerant of water qualitiesLow mortality ratesLong-lasting on the hookGrow fast
Disadvantages Need large number of spawning females since females
produce low number of eggs (10-200 per spawn and up to 1,200 per season)
Very dependent on market demand and time of year Still a lot to learn in aquaculture of bull minnow
Sources
Auburn University Marine Extension & Research Center http://www.extension.org/mediawiki/files/2/24/Growing_Bull_Minnows_in_Alabama.pdf
Southern Regional Aquaculture Center https://srac.tamu.edu/index.cfm/event/getFactSheet/whichfactsheet/149/
Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experimental Station http://msucares.com/crec/aquabull.html
http://www.aces.edu/dept/fisheries/aquaculture/baitfish-minnow.php