Production of Marine Shrimp Integrated with Tilapia at High Densities and in a Biofloc System: Choosing the Best Spatial Configuration

Abstract

Integrating marine shrimp and tilapia has been shown to be a viable alternative in a system based on bioflocs, but there is no consensus on the spatial arrangement of farmed animals. The present study aims to (1) compare the performance of shrimp and fish in high density when subjected to polyculture (species in the same tank) and multitrophic (species in different tanks) arrangements, and (2) effects on water quality, especially on organic matter (biofloc). The experiment was carried out for 30 days, and three treatments with bioflocs were evaluated in triplicate: control: shrimp monoculture, polyculture: shrimp and tilapia in the same tank, and multitrophic: shrimp and tilapia in separate tanks. The results show that the best product configuration is the multitrophic system, where the biological control of bioflocs took place, and the best performance of the Pacific white shrimp L. vannamei and Nile tilapia O. niloticus was obtained. Tilapia, as an organic consumer, was effective in controlling bioflocs.

Effect of Organic or Inorganic Fertilization on Microbial Flocs Production in Integrated Cultivation of Ulva lactuca with Oreochromis niloticus and Penaeus vannamei

“…Fish performance in terms of weight gain was superior in the heterotrophic system compared to the chemoautotrophic system, possibly due to the higher availability of suspended organic matter. The reduced feed supply aimed to induce floc consumption in the system, as demonstrated by Holanda et al [7], with floc serving as a supplementary food source for organisms [62]. Hence, the higher concentration of total suspended solids in the heterotrophic system might have positively influenced fish weight gain.…”

“…In addition to macroalgae serving as inorganic consumers, the IMTA system also includes organic consumers to consume the solids produced in the system. The tilapia Oreochromis niloticus, known for its ease of handling and feeding habits, has been utilized in integrated systems, showing positive results in solid filtration [7,8]. Due to its robustness, tilapia can also be produced in brackish water without negative effects on its zootechnical performance [9].…”

Nitrogen and phosphorus budgets of a polyculture system containing Penaeus vannamei, Siganus guttatus, and Selenotoca multifasciata

“…Polyculture systems improve total productivity and nutrient utilization efficiency, improving to the sustainability of the aquaculture system (Flickinger et al, 2019; Troell et al, 2009). To date, research on the N and P budgets of polyculture systems has focused mainly on Oreochromis niloticus (Muangkeow et al, 2007), Mugil cephalus (Aghuzbeni et al, 2015), Tetraodontidae (Magarinos et al, 1995), Ctenopharyngodon idella (Sun et al, 2015), Silurus asotus (Wang, 2021), Tilapia (Holanda et al, 2022), and P. vannamei .…”

“…To date, research on the N and P budgets of polyculture systems has focused mainly on Oreochromis niloticus (Muangkeow et al, 2007), Mugil cephalus (Aghuzbeni et al, 2015), Tetraodontidae (Magarinos et al, 1995), Ctenopharyngodon idella (Sun et al, 2015), Silurus asotus , Tilapia (Holanda et al, 2022), and P. vannamei.…”

Production of the Macroalgae Ulva lactuca Integrated with the Shrimp Penaeus vannamei in a Biofloc System: Effect of Total Suspended Solids and Nutrient Concentrations

“…Integrating macroalgae into shrimp farming increases the system's productivity, and two or more species can be cultivated in the same area without negatively affecting their performance, thus increasing economic viability [6]. The advantages of integrated systems have been shown to be effective in studies such as Nobre et al [7] with macroalgae and abalone, Holanda et al [8] with shrimp and fish, Verdian et al [9], which showed improvements in zootechnical performance when integrating shrimp, fish, and macroalgae, and Poli et al [10] with shrimp, fish, and halophytes.…”