Improvement of Yellowtail Kingfish Production Efficiency Through Food and Feeding Management

• Project Number - 2009/700
• PhD Student - To be appointed
• Student Affiliation - Flinders University
• Primary Supervisor - Dr Bennan Chen
• Co-Supervisors - Dr Stewart Fielder and Dr Wayne Hutchinson
• Mentor - Dr Morten Deichmann (Clean Seas Tuna Ltd)

About the Project

Significant problems exist in fingerling production in South Australia, particularly with the survival rate from hatching to fingerlings consistently below 10% and deformity of fish juveniles over 40% in Yellowtail Kingfish.

Deformed fish have low market value and their culture is a waste of time and effort. However, we consider that there are significant opportunities to improve this situation. This PhD project will use an innovative approach to understanding how much fish can feed and how fish digest food and absorb nutrition. It is hypothesised that nutritional defect and inappropriate food supply lead to larval fish mortality and juvenile deformity. This project will also examine food requirements and digestive physiology of fish larvae to provide solutions to the existing problems.

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This page was last updated: 30th March 2009