Most marine finfish require live feed during the first feeding phase of the larval cycle - a period of extreme importance to the continued growth and development of marine finfish aquaculture . Live feeds must provide adequate nutrition, stimulate a feeding response, and be small enough to be consumed by larval fish. Currently, most cultured marine fish are raised with rotifers as their first feed due to the ease and lower costs associated with rotifer production. However, rotifers lack the proper nutritional profile required by marine fish and must be enriched prior to feeding, are not easily digested by all marine fish, and, generally, do not move in a manner that elicits a feeding response in marine fish larvae. On the other hand, copepod nauplii are the preferred prey of many wild marine fish larvae, provide marine fish larvae with proper nutrition without enrichment , and move in a manner that marine fish larvae associate with prey leading to a feeding response.
Research trials have shown that multiple high value species, including several snappers, groupers, and marine ornamental species, can be cultured with greater success using copepod nauplii as a first live feed as opposed to rotifers. To date, the use of copepod nauplii in commercial marine finfish aquaculture has been limited by inconsistent and costly production. Th is research evaluates system design and production costs associated with inten sive production of Parvocalanus crassirostris and Oithona colcarva copepod nauplii . Costs are based on production systems, techniques, and research trials performed at the University of Florida Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory. Both production systems analyzed employed overlapping batch production processes designed to produce a continuous supply of nauplii f or larval marine finfish producers. Both system construction and production costs are analyzed for all three system components: water-mixing for production of saltwater, algal production, and nauplii production. The analysis evaluates potential system and per unit production cost reductions associated with access to natural saltwater sources, scaling of production, and the potential use of microalgae concentrates as opposed to live algae for feeding .