CATFISH-ONLY (Ictalurus punctatus) STOCKING RATES FOR FERTILIZED FARM PONDS: ARE CURRENT STOCKING RECOMMENDATIONS SUFFICIENT?

C. Bauer Duke*, Kayla McCoy, Nathan Stone, and Sindhu Kaimal
 Aquaculture/Fisheries Center
 University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
 1200 North University Drive
 Pine Bluff, AR 71601
dukeb@uapb.edu

Small farm ponds less than 0.2ha in area are best suited for monoculture of fish like channel catfish. The current recommended stocking rate for catfish in fertilized ponds is 500 fingerlings/ha (catfish only option). Small fingerlings are vulnerable to an assortment of predators, extra fish should be stocked to compensate for anticipated losses, but stocking at high rates could slow growth. In 2014, small channel catfish fingerlings (5-7.6cm long or 14.5 kg/1000 fish) were stocked at rates of 247, 494, 741, 988 or 1235 fish/hectare into 0.2 ha ponds (6 replicates per treatment).  Survival averaged only 19.7% across all stocking densities. In 2015 the study continued to examine the variability in catfish fingerling survival and growth when stocked at two rates at two initial sizes in small ponds.  On April 13, 2014, small channel catfish fingerlings (average length of 6.9 to 14.1 cm or 8.7 kg per 1,000 fish) and large channel catfish fingerlings (average length of 13.5 to 20.7 cm or 35.4 kg per 1,000 fish) were stocked at rates of 494 or 1235 fish/hectare into 0.10-hectare ponds (6 replicates per treatment) at the Aquaculture Research Station, UAPB. Individual ponds were fertilized when the Secchi disk visibility exceeded 61cm, except when submersed weeds became established.  There was no supplemental feeding. Ponds were sampled by seine pull after 127-128 days (Aug 18-19); bulk weights of fish and the number of fish captured were recorded. The ponds will be totally harvested in November 2015.  Survival at sampling averaged 49.9% across all stocking densities.