Integrated multitrophic aquaculture in biobloc technology with different fertilization approaches
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20950/1678-2305/bip.2026.52.e957Keywords:
Chemoautotrophic, Heterotrophic, Integrated multi-trophic system, Water quality, Inputs, Pilot production projectAbstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of Penaeus vannamei and Oreochromis niloticus in an integrated multi-trophic system with biofloc technology using different strategies. Two treatments were developed: TC (chemoautotrophic) and TH (heterotrophic). The TC treatment started 46 days before stocking the animals, with inorganic fertilization. In the TH treatment, organic fertilization was carried out after stocking the animals. Four hundred shrimp∙m-2 (1.00 ± 0.04 g) and 45 tilapia fry∙m-3 (25 ± 0.50 g) were stocked for 86 days. Water quality parameters such as temperature, oxygen, and pH were monitored daily. Total ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate, total suspended solids, and settleable solids were monitored twice a week. Prior fertilization in the chemoautotrophic treatment avoided high concentrations of nitrogen compounds in the system, due to the prior establishment of bacteria, compared to the heterotrophic treatment. The increase in nitrogen compounds in heterotrophic treatment led to higher water use, reduction in feed and consequently lower shrimp growth performance compared to the chemoautotrophic system. Tilapia’s growth was not affected. Therefore, the use of prior fertilization in chemoautotrophic treatment allowed for a higher final weight, yield of shrimp, and greater environmental sustainability.
References
American Public Health Association (APHA) (1989). Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Waste Water (16th ed.). APHA, AWWA, WPFC.
American Public Health Association (APHA). (2005). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater (21st ed.). APHA, AWWA, WPFC.
Amionot, A., & Chaussepied, M. (1983). Manuel des analyses chimiques en milieu marin. Centre National pour l’exploitation des oceans.
Araneda, M., Gasca-Leyva, E., Vela, M. A., & Domínguez-May, R. (2020). Effects of temperature and stocking density on intensive culture of Pacific white shrimp in freshwater. Journal of Thermal Biology, 94, 102756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2020.102756
Avnimelech, Y. (1999). Carbon/nitrogen ratio as a control element in aquaculture systems. Aquaculture, 176(3-4), 227-235. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0044-8486(99)00085-X
Avnimelech, Y., & Kochba, M. (2009). Evaluation of nitrogen uptake and excretion by tilapia in biofloc tanks, using N-15 tracing. Aquaculture, 287(1-2), 163-168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2008.10.009
Bendschneider, K., & Robinson, R. J. (1952). New spectrophotometric method for the determination of nitrite in water. Fresenius Environmental Bulletin and Advances in Food Sciences.
Brandão, H., Xavier, Í. V., Santana, G. K. K., Santana, H. J. K., Krummenauer, D., & Wasielesky, W. (2021). Heterotrophic versus mixed BFT system: Impacts on the water use, suspended solids production and growth performance of Litopenaeus vannamei. Aquacultural Engineering, 95, 102194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2021.102194
Burford, M. A., & Williams, K. C. (2001). The fate of nitrogenous waste from shrimp feeding. Aquaculture, 198(1-2), 79-93. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0044-8486(00)00589-5
Carvalho, A., Costa, L. C. O., Holanda, M., Poersch, L. H., & Turan, G. (2023). Influence of total suspended solids on the growth of the sea lettuce Ulva lactuca integrated with the pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei in a biofloc system. Fishes, 8(3), 163. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8030163
Chopin, T. (2015). Marine aquaculture in Canada: Wellestablished monocultures of finfish and shellfish and an emerging Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) approach including seaweeds, other invertebrates, and microbial communities. Fisheries, 40(1), 28-31. https://doi.org/10.1080/03632415.2014.986571
Cohen, J. M., Samocha, T. M., Fox, J. M., Gandy, R. L., & Lawrence, A. L. (2005). Characterization of water quality factors during intensive raceway production of juvenile Litopenaeus vannamei using limited discharge and biosecure management tools. Aquacultural Engineering, 32(3-4), 425-442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2004.09.005
Ebeling, J. M., Timmons, M. B., & Bisogni, J. J. (2006). Engineering analysis of the stoichiometry of photoautotrophic, autotrophic, and heterotrophic removal of ammonia–nitrogen in aquaculture systems. Aquaculture, 257(1-4), 346-358. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2006.03.019
Ferreira, G. S., Silva, V. F., Martins, M. A., Silva, A. C. C. P., Machado, C., Seiffert, W. Q., & Vieira, F. N. (2020). Strategies for ammonium and nitrite control in Litopenaeus vannamei nursery systems with bioflocs.= Aquacultural Engineering, 88, 102040. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2019.102040
Ferreira, G. S., Santos, D., Schmachtl, F., Machado, C., Fernandes, V., Bögner, M., Schleder, D. D., Seiffert, W. Q., & Vieira, F. N. (2021). Heterotrophic, chemoautotrofic and mature approaches in bioflocs system for pacific white shrimp. Aquaculture, 533, 736099. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2020.736099
Ferreira, L. M. H., Lara, G., Wasielesky Jr., W., & Abreu, P. C. (2015). Biofilm versus biofloc: Are artificial substrates for biofilm production necessary in the BFT system. Aquaculture International, 24, 921-930. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-015-9961-0
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (2024). The state of world fisheries and aquaculture: blue transformation in action. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. FAO.
Furtado, P. S., Poersch, L. H., & Wasielesky, W. (2014). The effect of different alkalinity levels on Litopenaeus vannamei reared with biofloc technology (BFT). Aquaculture International, 23(1), 345-358. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-014-9819-x
Gao, W., Tian, L., Huang, T., Yao, M., Hu, W., & Xu, Q. (2016). Effect of salinity on the growth performance, osmolarity and metabolism-related gene expression in white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. Aquaculture Report, 4, 125-129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2016.09.001
Gaona, C. A. P., Almeida, M. S., Viau, V., Poersch, L. H., & Wasielesky Jr., W. (2017). Effect of different total suspended solids levels on a Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone, 1931) BFT culture system during biofloc formation. Aquaculture Research, 48, 1070-1079. https://doi.org/10.1111/are.12949
García-Ríos, L., Miranda-Baeza, A., Coelho-Emerenciano, M. G., Huerta-Rábago, J. A., & Osuna-Amarillas, P.(2019). Biofloc technology (BFT) applied to tilapia fingerlings production using different carbono sources: Emphasis on comercial applications. Aquaculture, 502, 26-31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2018.11.057
Handy, M., Samocha, T., Patnaik, S., Gandy, R., & McKee, D. (2004). Nursery trial compares filtration system performance in intensive raceways. Global Seafood Alliance.
Holanda, M., Wasielesky Jr., W., Lara, G. R., & Poersch, L. H. (2022). Production of marine shrimp integrated with tilapia at high densities and in a biofloc system: choosing the best spatial configuration. Fishes, 7(5), 283. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7050283
Huang, M., Xie, J., Yu, Q., Xu, C., Zhou, L., Qin, J. G., Chen, L., & Li, E. (2020). Toxic effect of chronic nitrite exposure on growth and health in Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. Aquaculture, 529, 735664. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2020.735664
Jory, D. E., Cabrera, T. R., Dugger, D. M., Fegan, D., Lee, P. G., Lawrence, A. L., Jackson, C. J., McIntosh, R. P., & Castañeda, J. (2001). A global review of shrimp feed management: status and perspectives. In C. L. Browdy & D. E. Jory (Eds.), The new wave: proceedings of the special session on sustainable shrimp culture (pp. 104-152). The World Aquaculture Society.
Khanjani, M. H., Mozanzadeh, M. T., Sharifinia, M., & Emerenciano, M. G. C. (2023). Biofloc: A sustainable dietary supplement, nutritional value and functional properties. Aquaculture, 562, 738757. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2022.738757
Khanjani, M. H., Sajjadi, M. M., Alizadeh, M., & Sourinejad, I. (2016). Nursey performance of Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei Boone, 1931) cultivated in a biofloc system: the effect of adding different carbon sources. Aquaculture Research, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1111/are.12985
Lara, G. R., Poersch, L. H., & Wasielesky Jr., W. (2021). The quantity of artificial substrates influences the nitrogen cycle in the biofloc culture system of Litopenaeus vannamei. Aquacultural Engineering, 94, 102171. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2021.102171
Lin, Y. C., & Chen, J.-C. (2003). Acute toxicity of nitrite on Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone) juveniles at different salinity levels. Aquaculture, 224(1-4), 193-201. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0044-8486(03)00220-5
Morais, A. P. M., Santos, I. L., Carneiro, R. F. S., Routledge, E. A. B., Hayashi, L., Lorenzo, M. A., & Vieira, F. N. (2023). Integrated multitrophic aquaculture system applied to shrimp, tilapia, and seaweed (Ulva ohnoi) using biofloc technology. Aquaculture, 572, e739492. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2023.739492
Naylor, R. L., Hardy, R. W., Bureau, D. P., Chiu, A., Elliot, M., Farrell, A. P., Forster, I., Gatlin, D. M., Goldburg, R. J., Hua, K., & Nichols, P. D. (2009). Feeding aquaculture in an era of finite resources. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106, 15103-15110. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0905235106
Queiroz, H. M., Ferreira, T. O., Taniguchi, C. A. K., Barcellos, D., Nascimento, J. C., Nóbrega, G. N., Otero, X. L., & Artur, A. G. (2020). Nitrogen mineralization and eutrophication risks in mangroves receiving shrimp farming effluents. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 27, 34941-34950. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-09720-1
Robles-Porchas, G. R., Gollas-Galván, T., Martínez-Porchas, M., Martínez-Cordova, L. R., Miranda-Baeza, A., & Vargas-Albores, F. (2020). The nitrification process for nitrogen removal in biofloc system aquaculture. Reviews in Aquaculture, 12(4), 2228-2249. https://doi.org/10.1111/raq.12431
Roriz, G. D., Delphino, M. K. V. C., Gardner, I. A., & Gonçalves, V. S. P. (2017). Characterization of tilapia farming in net cages at a tropical reservoir in Brazil. Aquaculture Reports, 6, 43-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2017.03.002
Silva, K. R., Wasieleski Jr., W., & Abreu, P. C. (2013). Nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics in the biofloc production of the pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society, 44(1), 30-41. https://doi.org/10.1111/jwas.12009
Stewart, N. T., Boardman, G. D., & Helfrich, L. A. (2006). Characterization of nutrient leaching rates from settled rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) sludge. Aquaculture Engineering, 35(2), 191-198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2006.01.004
Strickland, J. D. H., & Parsons, T. R. (1972). A pratical handbook of seawater analysis (2nd ed.). Fisheries Research Board of Canada.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) (1983). Chemical methods for use in marine environmental monitoring. Manual and Guides 12. Intergovernamental Oceanographic Commissiony.
Valencia-Castañeda, G., Vanegas-Pérez, R. C., Frías-Espericueta, M. G., Chávez-Sánchez, M. C., Ramírez-Rochin, J., & Páez-Osuna, F. (2017). Comparison of four treatments to evaluate acute toxicity of nitrite in shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei postlarvae: Influence of feeding and the renewal water. Aquaculture, 491, 375-380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2017.12.037
Vinatea, L., Gálvez, A. O., Browdy, C. L., Stokes, A., Venero, J., Haveman, J., Lewis, B. L., Lawson, A., Shuler, A., & Leffler, J. W. (2010). Photosynthesis, water respiration and growth performance of Litopenaeus vannamei in a super-intensive raceway culture with zero water exchange: interaction of water quality variables. Aquacultural Engineering, 42(1), 17-24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2009.09.001
Wasielesky, W., Atwood, H., Stokes, A., & Browdy, C. L. (2006). Effect of natural production in a zero exchange suspended microbial floc based super-intensive culture system for white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. Aquaculture, 258(1-4), 396-403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2006.04.030
Zar, J. H. (2010). Biostatical analysis (5th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Jorge Santos, Andrezza Carvalho Chagas, Mariana Holanda, Mayra Gonçalves, Wilson Wasielesky Júnior, Luis Henrique Poersch
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
