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Produced by: Fisheries and Aquaculture Department

Title: Fish Culture in undrainable ponds - A manual for extension...

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4. PRESENT PRACTICES OF FISH CULTURE IN PONDS

4.1 Carp culture

The most successful system of pond fish culture is the polyculture of three Indian major carp species - catla, rohu and mrigal along with three Chinese

carps viz. silver carp, grass carp and common carp. In India this is commonly known as composite fish culture. The best results in terms of fish

production in this system results not only through a judicious combination of species, but also due to appropriate management techniques including pond

fertilization, supplementary feeding and health care. On the basis of growth performance of different species, modifications are often made in stocking

density, species ratio, fertilization schedule and supplementary feeding programme in different agroclimatic conditions. High rates of fish production to thetune of over 5 500 kg/ha/6 months, 7 200 kg/ha/8 months and over 10 tonnes/ha/yr have been achieved in composite fish culture trials conducted in

different agroclimatic conditions of India.

The carp culture system as a whole is operated as a three-tier culture system where the practices are adopted for rearing fish during their different stages

till they are harvested. Spawn (post larvae) are reared upto fry (2 –3 cm) stage in nursery ponds, fry to fingerlings (8– 12 cm) in rearing ponds and finally

fingerlings to table -size fish in composite fish culture ponds or stocking ponds. Relatively smaller, seasonal ponds are mainly used for rearing spawn to fry

stage and harvested after 2 –3 weeks. Several crops (3– 4) of fry are usually taken during the season. Pond fertilization by cattle manure and feeding with

1: 1 mixture of oil cakes and rice bran is the usual practice. Fry raised in nurseries are reared upto fingerlings in slightly bigger ponds (0.05 – 0 .1 ha) of

seasonal or perennial in nature. Fingerlings are removed after 3 months and stocked in composite fish culture ponds.

4.2 Integrated carp farming

An integrated approach of composite fish culture together with compatible combination(s) with poultry, duckery, pig rearing and cattle raising is now being

adopted. Under this system of farming small livestock and farm yard animals, viz. pigs, poultry, ducks, etc., are integrated with composite fish culture by

siting animal housing units on the pond embankments in such a way that the animal wastes and washings are diverted into fish ponds for recycling. The

fish not only utilize spilled animal feed but also directly feed on fresh animal excreta which is partially digested and is rich in nutrients. Surplus excreta

supports the rich growth of planktonic fauna. Fertilizers and supplementary feed are not used, resulting in drastic cost reduction (Sharma et al ., 1979;

1979a). Production potential through integrated carp farming is summarised in Table 4.

Table 4

Annual production through integrated carp livestock farmingIntegration Fish production Animal production (live weight)

Fish +

Pig farming 6 – 7 ton /ha 4 000–5 000 kg pig meat

Fish +

Duck farming 3 – 4 ton /ha 500 kg duck meat + 17 000–20 000 eggs

Fish +

Poultry farming 4–5 ton /ha 60 000–70 000 eggs + 1 500– 2 000 kg meat

The salient features of the various types of livestock/carp integrated culture systems are described below.

4.2.1 Integrated fish - pig farming

Pigstyes are constructed either on the pond embankment or near the pond to facilitate easy drainage of waste directly into the pond which acts as pond

fertilizer and supports dense growth of natural fish food organisms (Figs.9A and 9 B). Besides, fish also feed directly on the pig excreta. No other feed or

fertilizer is applied to the pond. A pond is prepared by following the usual pond preparation techniques (Section 9 .1 ) and stocked with fingerlings of all the

six species of carps cultured under composite fish culture at higher of 8 000–9 000/ha with surface, column, bottom feeders and grass carp in the ratio of

40:20: 30:10. Marketable size fish are sold by partial harvesting while final harvesting is done only after 12 months of farming.

About 2 months-old weaned piglets are fattened for six months when they attain slaughter size (60– 70 kg) and similarly a second crop is raised within the

next six months. About 30–40 pigs should be kept for proper fertilization of the pond. Pigs are fed on mash at an average rate of 1 kg/day. Green grasses

or animal fodder is also provided. Grass with interlocked soil in root system (sod) are provided once a week to avoid mineral deficiency.

Grass carp is fed with aquatic weeds or green animal fodder.

Fish yields ranging from 6 000–7 000 kg/ha/yr are generally obtained.

4.2.2 Integrated fish - duck farming

This is also an efficient integrated system based on the principle of waste recycling. Pond preparation technique is basically the same. A duck house is

normally constructed on the pond embankment or on the pond water on a floating platform (Figs. 10A and 10B). When given free range, ducks feed on

aquatic organisms such as insect larvae, tadpoles, molluscs, weeds, etc. The duck droppings like pig excreta act as fertilizer. Ponds are prepared and

stocked with fingerlings of all the six carp species at 6 000 ha with surface, column, bottom feeder and grass carp in the ratio of 40:20:30 :10. Fingerlings

of over 10 cm are preferred for stocking. About 200–400 ducks are sufficient to adequately fertilize a l ha pond. Normally 2–3 months old ducklings are

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start laying after 5 –6 months and continue for 2 years. Fish yields ranging from 3 000–5 000 kg/ha/yr are generally obtained.

Figure 9 a. Fish-cum-pig farming (wooden pigsty)

Figure 9 b. Fish-cum-pig farming (concrete pigsty)

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