World Aquaculture March 2019

64 MARCH 2019 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WA S.ORG pieces of plant leaves on the water surface, which are trapped in the air bubble nest, providing it with stability. • Manage and maintain optimum water quality (Table 5). Health Maintenance Active, healthy and colorful fish enhance the beauty of aquaria, and only such fish can withstand the stress of transportation and have market value. In general, ornamental fishes are susceptible to various diseases because of limiting factors that include water quality, overcrowding, nutritional imbalance and poor husbandry practices. Therefore, ‘prevention is better than cure’ is the major strategy of health management at ornamental fish production farms. So, regular water quality management in the aquarium and timely implementation of various preventive and biosecurity measures can reduce the disease risk in ornamental fish rearing. The application of various prophylactic measures, involving treatment of fish with common salt, methylene blue and potassium permanganate, helps prevent the occurrence of disease. Marketing Trade The existing scenario of the ornamental fish trade in India has triggered a cyclic relationship between hobbyists and producers and traders of inputs, including ornamental fish and accessories. India contributes only 0.32 percent to the total value of world ornamental trade of US$ 362 million (Jain et al. 2016). In India, ornamental gouramis fetch attractive prices in the ornamental fish trade (Table 6). Besides export, major cities such as Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai are the leading cities that deal with ornamental gourami fish breeding and its propagation; however, the farming and breeding of banded gourami, lily gourami and honey gourami are well established in Kolkata and nearby areas. Conclusion Ornamental fish breeding and culture provides opportunities for a lucrative business in urban and rural areas. These fishes are fancied by people all over the world and aquarium fish keeping has been developed as a hobby by many. The nest-building ornamental gouramis are fascinating for their brilliant and attractive coloration, tiny size and their ability to adapt in confined aquaria. They also fetch good prices in domestic and international markets. With technical knowledge and practical experience, aqua-entrepreneurs can work on the sustainability of these species and have a profitable enterprise with minimum investment. Notes Alok Kumar Jena*, Pradyut Biswas, Department of Aquaculture, College of Fisheries, Central Agricultural University (I), Tripura-799210 * Corresponding author email: alokkumarjena427@gmail.com Sandeep Shankar Pattanaik, Department of Aquaculture, Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai- 400 061 References Ayyappan, S. 2011. Handbook of Fisheries and Aquaculture. Indian Council of Agricultural Research publication, New Delhi. India. Jain, A.K., V.P. Saini and V.I. Kaur, editors. 2016. Best Management Practices for Freshwater Ornamental Fish Production. National Fisheries Development Board, Hyderabad. India. Joshi, A.K. 2016. Giant gourami – a less known but economically important freshwater fish. Matsya Bharat, Newsletter of the National Fisheries Development Board 8(1):17-20. Mathur, S., L.L. Sharma and A.K. Mathur. 2006. Handbook of Freshwater Ornamental Fishes. Yash Publishing House, Bikaner, Rajastan, India. TABLE 5. Optimal levels of water quality for gourami breeding. Parameters Optimum Range Temperature 24-30 C Dissolved oxygen > 5 mg/L pH 6.5-8.5 Total hardness 50-200 mg/L as CaCO 3 Total alkalinity 40-200 mg/L as CaCO 3 Nitrite Nil Ammonia Nil CO 2 < 15 mg/L Total suspended solids < 50 mg/L TABLE 6. Maximum retail price for gourami in the Indian market. Species Rupees per piece Blue gourami 15-50 Kissing gourami 10-50 Golden gourami 15-60 Dwarf gourami 10-40 Pearl gourami 50-200 Giant gourami 50-200 Ornamental fish breeding and culture provides opportunities for a lucrative business in urban and rural areas. These fishes are fancied by people all over the world and aquarium fish keeping has been developed as a hobby by many. The nest-building ornamental gouramis are fascinating for their brilliant and attractive coloration, tiny size and their ability to adapt in confined aquaria. They also fetch good prices in domestic and international markets. With technical knowledge and practical experience, aqua-entrepreneurs can work on the sustainability of these species and have a profitable enterprise with minimum investment.