Marine shrimp farming

Marine shrimp farming is the commercial cultivation of shrimp in coastal ponds and other marine or brackish-water systems for food. It relies on managed stocking, feeding, water quality, and disease control.

Connect

Shrimp hatchery: A facility that produces shrimp larvae and postlarvae for stocking farms. Hatcheries supply the young shrimp stocked into grow-out ponds.
Extensive shrimp farming: Shrimp production in large, low-input ponds that depend substantially on natural food and tidal water exchange. It is the least intensive common pond approach.
Mangrove deforestation: The loss or degradation of mangrove forests through clearing, conversion, or other pressures. Conversion of mangrove areas for ponds has driven substantial coastal habitat loss in some regions.
Wild shrimp fishery: The capture of naturally occurring shrimp from marine or estuarine waters for food. It supplies shrimp without pond cultivation, but depends on wild stocks and fishing practices.
Postlarva: A juvenile shrimp stage reached after metamorphosis from the planktonic larval stages. Postlarvae are the usual seed animals transferred from hatcheries to ponds.
Semi-intensive shrimp farming: Shrimp production using moderate stocking, supplemental feed, and managed water exchange or aeration. Many commercial farms balance natural pond productivity with added feed and management.
White spot syndrome: A highly contagious viral disease that can cause rapid, severe mortality in farmed and wild shrimp. Outbreaks can devastate ponds and spread through shrimp movements and contaminated water.
Freshwater prawn farming: The cultivation of freshwater prawns, especially Macrobrachium species, in freshwater systems. It is a related crustacean industry, but uses freshwater species rather than marine shrimp.
Pond preparation: The preparation of an aquaculture pond before stocking, including drying, cleaning, and conditioning its bottom and water. Preparation reduces pond hazards before shrimp enter the production cycle.
Intensive shrimp farming: High-density shrimp production that uses substantial feed, aeration, and close water-quality management. Higher stocking and inputs can raise output while increasing management demands.