ON-FARM TANK SYSTEMS DEPLOYED ON COMMERCIAL SHRIMP FARMS: A LOW BUDGET APPROACH THAT WORKS FOR EXTENSION DEMONSTRATION

There are many different approaches that can be implemented when carrying out on-farm Extension demonstrations in aquaculture. The design and approach used by Extension professionals is often governed by the particular problem or question that needs to be addressed as well as budgetary constraints within Extension programs. West Alabama is home to a unique inland marine shrimp industry that uses a low salinity artesian ground water (1 - 11 g L^-1) source to fill earthen ponds for semi-intensive production. While shrimp farmers use the same aquifer to fill their ponds, the ionic composition and salinity of the water source is quite variable. For the last 15 years, research, demonstration, and technology transfer have been carried out in west Alabama using low budget on-levee tank systems that can be set up and operated by Extension personnel on commercial shrimp farms using this unique water source (Fig. 1). In addition to using these tank systems to help answer a number of pressing questions faced by the inland shrimp industry they have been used to test new diet formulations and feed management regimes on commercial farms. Collectively, these Extension demonstrations on shrimp farms have resulted in 10 refereed journal articles as well as a number of popular and Extension publications since 2005. While carrying out on-farm Extension demonstrations can be challenging, Extension professionals must increasingly use innovative approaches to carry out relevant and practical on-farm technology transfer via traditional and non-traditional demonstration techniques. A historical view of west Alabama demonstrations using on-farm tank systems will be discussed; including funding sources for Extension work, on-farm Extension trials with limited availability of university full-time equivalents (FTEs), and coordination with farmers.