Ornamental fishes represent a lesser-known segment of global aquaculture production. Sales of individual, live, small-bodied organisms, make this commodity somewhat unique in the aquaculture industry. With thousands of species in the freshwater and marine ornamental trade, the diversity of life history strategies and production techniques can be daunting. Consequently, there exists a great need for research that optimizes culture practices for species currently in production, and investigations to define preliminary protocols for species that have yet to be commercialized.
Ornamental fish larvae can be exceedingly fragile and specific environmental and nutritional requirements must be characterized to formulate effective culture protocols. The larviculture phase accounts for the greatest observed mortality throughout the commercial production cycle. Events such as first feeding, swim bladder inflation, flexion, weaning, and metamorphosis represent significant bottlenecks that must be overcome to improve efficiency. A wholistic approach that integrates the culture environment and management strategies with the ontogeny of species specific development processes is prudent to maximize survival and growth of ornamental fish larvae. This presentation will explore approaches used at the University of Florida’s Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory to define effective larviculture protocols in marine and freshwater ornamental species.