• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.323-331
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• 1999

Most of channel fish farming in Alabama are still earthen pond style, and filled by rainfall and runoff. The water levels of ponds are maintained with stand-pipe, and the effluent from ponds very little discharged at usual time except ant heavy rains and crop season. Overflow from ponds following rains occurs mostly in winter and early spring when stream flows high. In this study to know how much effluents fish ponds affected to streams which are nearby ponds, a survey carried out on the variation of water quality of seven streams and effluents at heavy rains. Water samples were collected at 14 sites on upstream (did not affected by effluents) and downstream(being affect by effluents), and sampled monthly from August 1997 to August 1998. There were no clear trends of difference in most water quality variables between upstream and downstream of catfish farms during a year. The effluents from ponds after heavy rains were not highly polluted, but sometimes have elevated concentrations of TSS. Nitrogen content of effluents was higher than that of routine streams , but phosphorus was not clear. From this result suggest than the effluents from catfish farm are not having adverse impacts on stream water quality still yet .

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.187-197
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• 1993

Studies related to water quality in catfish ponds were conducted on commercial catfish production ponds and compared with its receiving streams' water quality in central and west-central Alabama. The ponds were stocked with 10,000 fish/ha. The ponds were aerated nightly (0000-0600 hrs). Fish were fed to satiation at about the same time, six-days a week. In order to assess the pollutional strength of effluents from commercial channel catfish ponds, water samples were collected during each calender season from fall 1990 through summer 1991, and selected water quality variables were monitored. Mean values for water temperature, dissolved oxygen concentration, pH, settleable solids, total suspended soilds, volatile solids, total phosphorus, soluble reactive phosphate, biochemical oxygen demand, total ammonia nitrogen, nitrite, nitrate, and total Kjeldahl nitrogen were basically the same (P> 0.05) between samples taken from the surface and near the bottom. Concentrations of most water quality variables of catfish ponds were higher than those of receiving streams, and especially it had much higher average concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus than streams.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.49-60
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• 2002

Research on practices for improving water quality in channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus ponds was conducted at the Auburn University Fisheries Research Station, Auburn, Alabama, in 1998 and 1999. The objective of this two-year study was to determine better management practices to enhance water quality and improve production efficiency. In the first year, oxidation of bottom soil by drying, tilling, and applying sodium nitrate was performed (dry-till and dry-till with sodium nitrate treatments). The second year, based on the results obtained during the first year, precipitation of phosphorus (P) from water by applying gypsum was compared to the dry-till treatment (dry-till and dry-till with gypsum treatments). Control ponds were not subjected to bottom drying, tilling, sodium nitrate, or gypsum treatment. Channel catfish fingerings were stocked at 15,000/ha. In the first year, water in ponds from dry-till and dry-till with sodium nitrate treatments had lower concentrations (P < 0.01) of soluble reactive P, nitrate ($NO_{3} ^{-}) and nitrite ($NO_{2} ^{-}) nitrogen (N), total ammonia ($NH_3$) nitrogen, total suspended solids and turbidity, and higher values of pH, Secchi disk visibility, total alkalinity, total hardness, and calcium ($Ca^{2+}) hardness than water in control ponds. Ponds of the dry-till treatment also had lower concentrations (P < 0.01) of total P and total N than control ponds. Total fish production and survival rate did not differ among the treatments (P > 0.05). The findings suggested that drying and tiling pond bosoms between crops could achieve water quality improvement. Applying sodium nitrate to dry, tilled pond bosoms did not provide water quality improvement. In the second year, the treatment with the best results from the first year, dry-till, was compared with a dry-till with gypsum treatment. Enough gypsum was applied to give a total hardness of about 200 mg/L, and gypsum was reapplied as needed to maintain the hardness. Compared to the control, dry-till and dry-till with gypsum treatments had lower concentrations (P < 0.01) of total and soluble reactive P, total N, and total $NH_3$-N, and higher concentrations (P < 0.01) of dissolved oxygen. Ponds of the duty-till with gypsum treatment also had lower concentrations (P < 0.01) of chlorophyll $\alpha$, chemical oxygen demand, and total alkalinity than the control. Total fish production and survival rate did not differ (P > 0.05) among the treatments. These findings suggest that drying and tilling pond bosoms between crops and treating low hardness waters with gypsum could achieve water Quality improvement.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.67-71
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• 2001

Phosphorus is an essential element for growth and metabolism in fish. However high levels of phosphorus in the feed can lead to poor water quality of pond, and can also be a potential source of pollution, when pond water is released to the environment. In this study phosphorus supplemented diets containing 0.0, 0.9 or 1.9% of (dicalcium) phosphate were offered to channel catfish and changes in water quality of ponds and phosphorus levels in fish were measured. Higher level of (1.9%) supplementation of phosphorus in diet resulted in higher concentration of T-P and SRP in pond waters. Also it produced negative effects on fish production by lowering feed coefficient and rate of increment in body weight. Surplus phosphorus can affect fish growth and water quality of pond.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.261-263
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• 1976

In 1975, a trial for channel catfish spawning was made for the first time in Korea, by stocking 11 pairs of brood fish in a $470m^2$ earthen pond provided with 5 cans of 35 cm in diameter with depths of about 60 cm as spawning nests. The same trial and another pen cage method combined with pituitary injection were practiced in 1976. All these trials failed without any spawning. On the other hand 4 females and 1 male were put in a recycling water system indoor aquarium for exhibition purpose it late spring of 1976. After removing 3 females which were injured from being bitten by the male, remaining one pair of the catfish spawned successfully in July and the most eggs developed normally. The water in the recycling system showed the pH range of 7.2 to 7.4,and mean water temperature of every 10 day period of a month gradually increased from 19.3 to 23.6C until spawning. The outdoor .ponds where the spawning was failed received water from the same origin as the indoor recycling system, and the mean temperature of every ten day period ranged Iron 17.2 to $29.8^{\circ}C$ in 1975 and 19.7 to $28.4^{\circ}C$ in 1976 these being considered well falling in the optimum range for catfish spawning, but pH ranged from 7.3 to 9.5 under the influence of photosynthesis of algae and weeds in the ponds. The high pH value may suppress the spawning of catfish as pointed out by Nelson in 1957.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.192-200
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• 1998

This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of feeding higher protein feeds with lesser amount, but feeding the constant total protein input for all treatments, on water quality and nitrite toxicity in channel catfish ponds. There was no significant difference in survival rate among treatments $(P>0.05)$. Specific growth rate (SGR) for Treatment 1$(28\%\;protein\;and\;100\%\;of\;satiation)$ was significantly higher $(P>0.05)$ than for Treatment 3$(36\%\;protein\;and\;87.5\%\;of\;satiation)$, but not significantly higher than for Treatment 2 $(32\%\;protein\;and\;77.8\%\;of\;satiation)$ at constant digestible energy (DE), 3.08kcal/g (treatments 1, 2 and 3). At constant DE/P (treatments 4, 2 and 5), no significant difference in SGR was observed among treatments. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) slightly improved or improved as dietary protein level increased from $28\%$ to $32\%$ and feed allowance decreased by $12.5\%$, but did not improve as dietary protein level increased from $32\%$ to $36\%$ and feed allowance decreased by $22.2\%$, at constant DE and constant DE/P. There was no significant difference in water quality variables, such as total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), nitrite, chlorophyll a, soluble phosphorous concentrations among treatments, but significant difference in water quality variables over time as amount of feed fed increased $(P<0.0001)$. There was a trend toward increase in TAN and nitrite over time. A strong linear regression was observed between mean total ammonia nitrogen and nitrite for all treatments Y (Nitrite) =$0.04\times (TAN)+0.01$, $R_2=0.89$. Methemoglobin percent in the blood of catifish was not significantly different among treatments. And its mean value was $7.5\%$, which was relatively low, so that it was not serious problem in catfish production pond under these experiment conditions. There was the stronger linear regression between the percentage of Methemoglobin and the molar ratio of nitrite to chloride rather than nitrite alone: $Y\;(Methemoglobin\;\%)\;=\;58.45\;\times\;(NO^{2-}/Cl^-)\;+\;0.41,\;R^2=0.60$. These results indicate that deterioration of water quality has no strong impact on poor weight gain for $36\%$ dietary protein in this study.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.255-259
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• 1998

This study was designed to evaluate the economic analysis of channel catfish production in 1998 based on fish value and total feed cost. Catfish received higher protein feeds with lesser amount based on the dietary protein levels, but received the constant total protein input for all treatments. Weight gain per pond for treatment 1 $(28\%\;protein,\;100\%\;of\;satiation)$ was higher (P<0.10) than for treatment 3 $(36\%\;protein,\;77.8\%\;of\;satiation)$, but not significantly higher than for treatment 2 $(32\%\;protein,\;87.5\%\;of\;satiation)$ at constant DE. At constant DE/P (treatments 4, 2 and 5), weight gain per pond for treatment 5 $(36\%\;protein,\;77.8\%\;of\;satiation)$ was lower (P<0.10) than for treatment 2, but not significantly lower than for treatment 4 $(28\%\;protein,\;100\%\;of\;satiation)$. At constant DE, feed conversion slightly improved as dietary protein level increased from $28\%\;to\;32\%$ and feed allowance decreased by $12.5\%$, but did not improve further as dietary protein level increased from $28\%\;to\;36\%$ and feed allowance decreased by $22.2\%$. At constant DE/P, feed conversion improved as dietary protein level increased from $28\%\;to\;32\%$ increased and feed allowance decreased by $12.5\%$, but did not improve as dietary protein level increased from $28\%\;to\;36\%$ and feed allowance decreased by $22.2\%$ Total feed cost for treatment 1 was slightly, but not significantly higher than for treatments 2 and 3 at constant DE. At constant DE/P, total feed cost for treatment 5 was higher (P<0.05) than for treatment 2, but not significantly higher than for treatment 4. Total value of fish ($ /ha) produced for treatment 1 was highest and lowest was for treatment 5. Return above feed cost was highest for treatment 1 and nearly the same as treatment 2. Return over feed cost for treatments 3 and 4 were slightly lower than for treatments 1 and 2. Economic analysis showed that feeding fish the diet containing $28\%$ protein and 3.08 kcal/g DE to satiation and the diet containing $32\%$ protein and 3.08 kcal/g DE to $87.5\%$ of satiation produced the highest profit to farmer.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.25-30
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• 1990

Adult channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, mature but do not ovulate and spawn in ponds in Korea. Ovulation and natural spawning were induced in the breeding season by increasing water temperature or injecting one to three doses of both 4.4 mg dried carp pituitary or 1,100 IU human chorionic gonadotropin(HCG) per kg body weight at 24 hours intervals when plural doses were employed. The increasing higher temperature (from $24^{\circ}C$ to $30^{\circ}C$) resulted in 4 times greater ovulation than lower increase of temperature (from $24^{\circ}C$ to $27^{\circ}C$). In overall performance, dried carp pituitary gave $78.6\%$ ovulation and HCG induced $66.6\%$ ovulation. None of the control fish spawned in any of the experiments.