Aquaculture:
Fish Farming
By: Audrey Harmon
There are many types of fish. Some
live in oceans. They need salt water.
Some live in lakes and rivers. They
need fresh water.
In Oklahoma we have no bodies of
salt water but we have plenty of
fresh water lakes and rivers.
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We have more man-made lakes than any
other state.
We have over 1 million surface acres of
water.
We have 2,000 more miles of shoreline
than the Atlantic and Gulf coasts
combined.
Most fish grow in rivers and lakes, but
in some places there are fish farms.
Fish farming is called aquaculture.
Aquaculture is one of the fastest
growing segments of US agriculture.
Channel catfish is the primary species
of farm-raised fish in the US. The
grandparents of most of the channel
catfish raised in the US are probably
from Oklahoma.
Channel catfish can be grouped in
one of four groups while at the
farm.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Brood Fish- the fish that produce the
offspring.
Fry- the newly hatched fish.
Fingerlings- young catfish.
Marketable Fish- fish that are about 18
months old and weigh between 1 and
1 ½ pounds.
When catfish are 18 days old they are
strong enough to be transferred to
outdoor ponds. These ponds vary in
size from 5-20 acres and are 4-5 feet
deep.
The young fish are fed twice a day.
Their food is made from soybeans,
corn, wheat, and fish meal.
When the catfish are ready to
harvest, they are caught in nets and
placed in aerated tank trucks for live
shipment to processing plants.
Interesting facts about channel
catfish:
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They do not have
scales.
Their color depends
on the color of water
they live in.
Catfish move mostly
at night.
During the day,
catfish hide.
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They need oxygen to
live.
They use gills to breathe
oxygen.
Fish that are stressed or
pursued by a predator
need more oxygen than
fish at rest.
Fish provide us with
protein.