Yes, folks, shrimp can be grown outdoors

摘要

An experiment using hatchery-bred giant Malaysian shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) from the warm, sunny Kentucky State University, has shown that the species can be grown successfully in ponds in the cooler, shorter summer of southern Ohio. The trial program, run during the summer of 2002, confirmed that shrimp cultivation benefited from the fractionally cooler pond waters of the more northern area. Temperatures remained below the optimal 18 deg C (65 deg F) later into the season, delaying the start of the usual 100-120-day grow-out period until about June 1,and deferring maturation. The research program led by Ohio State University aquacul-ture specialists Laura Tiu and Geoff Wallat, showed that in water that is slightly cooler than the optimumfor growth, the shrimp mature less rapidly, and energy that would otherwise go into reproduction is available for growth. In one instance, shrimp grew from an initial weight of about 0.5 grams to between 32 and 45 grams (averaging roughly 38 - 42 grams)in just 75 days. That's close to 30 days less than the 110 days normally observed in warmer grow-out ponds in Mississippi. According to Tiu, the shrimp - technically prawns because of their claws - largely stop growing at 18 deg C. At 13 deg C, they die, so must be harvested before the water temperature declines to that point in the fall. As a result, farmers have only a limited period in which to grow their shrimp to market size. Many farmers are keen to diversify, and grow shrimp to supplement theirincome from other agricultural activities. The question was whether southern Ohio is too far north for shrimp production to be feasible in outdoor ponds.