- Aquaculture refers to the production of aquatic animals and plants under controlled conditions
- According to Food and Agriculture organisation(FAO), aquaculture is understood to mean the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants
- It can be classified into following categories
- Freshwater aquaculture
- Coastal aquaculture
- Sea farming
- Brackish water aquaculture
Types of Aquaculture
- Freshwater aquaculture
- The ‘Central institute of Freshwater Aquaculture’, has contributed a lot in breeding and rearing cat-fish, freshwater shark
- Freshwater prawn or shrimp is an important form of aquaculture and prawn is raised for human consumption
- This type is practiced in states of West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh
- Brackish water farming
- This is mostly confined to coastal wetlands impounded by human, locally known as bheries in West Bengal
- It is also practiced in Kerala, locally known as pakkali
- This is type of aquaculture has got recognition after initiation of an All India coordinated Research project(AICRP) in ‘Brackish water Fish Farming’ by ICAR
- Shrimp farming
- In this marine shrimps are produced for human consumption
- The formation of Brackishwater Fish Farmers’ development Authority, in marine states proved to be of great help to shrimp farming
- Andhra pradesh, Odisha, Tamilnadu, Kerala and West Bengal have developed shrimp farming in a big way
- Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh is a prolific producer of shrimp, that it has earned the distinct name of Shrimp capital of India
- Mariculture
- This is a branch of aquaculture which is concerned with the cultivation of marine organisms for food and other products in open ocean, enclosed seas or a section of ocean, tanks, ponds
- Fish, prawns and oyster are main food products
- Nonfood products include fish-meat, nutrient agar, jewelries and cosmetics
- Algaculture
- This involves farming of varied species of algae
- Majority of cultivated algae belongs to category of micro algae, also referref to as phytoplankton, microphytes
- Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture
- In this type, by-products from one species are recycles as inputs for another
- Fed aquaculture(ex: fish, shrimp) is combined with inorganic extractive(ex: seaweed) and organic extractive(ex:shell fish) aquaculture to create balanced systems for environmental and economic sustainability as well for social acceptability
- Fish farming
- These involve raising of fish in tanks or other water enclosures on a commercial scale
- Salmon, catfish, cod, carp, trout, are the chief species of fish reared under fish farming
- Seaweed culture
- Marine algae are known as seaweeds
- Sunlight penetrates to depths of around 15m, so most of sea weeds grow in shallow waters around shores or reeds
- At present, seaweed account for 30% of world aquaculture production
- Seaweed has wide range of application in the fields of food, textile, cosmetic, pharmaceuticals, fodder, fertilisers, due to which its demand has increased tremendously in the recent past
- They are rich in vitamins, minerals, trace elements and bioactive substances and have become an important ingredient of human food
- Hence, the vast scope for its further development in India
- Paddy-cum-fish culture
- In many parts of the country, fish are reared in paddy fields which are flooded with water for paddy sowing
- Strong dykes or field boundaries are constructed to prevent the escape of cultivates fish during floods
- Research has shown that the paddy-fish cultivation system is capable of lowering the emission of methane and other GHGs
- The method of raising fish from the rice fields probably began with the beginning of rice cultivation itself in the North East, because the waterlogged rice fields create a natural habitat for fish
- Along with reducing the emission of greenhouse gases, co-culture systems have beneficial effects on farm income and improving the livelihood of poor rural people and progressive farmers.
