Abstract

In contrast to freshwater aquaculture and the culture of anadromous species such as salmon, marine fish culture is in its infancy. The small larval size of many marine species presents significant challenges to culture, however, these highly valuable fish offer considerable promise for aquaculture. A particularly attractive group for marine aquaculture is the flatfish. The California halibut, Paralichthys californicus, with a range in nature from Washington State south to Baja Califorma Sur, Mexico is one such species. With the goal of enhancing the fishery for this species, a hatchery program was developed over a decade ago. The hatchery at Redondo Beach, California, maintains a group of adults that routinely spawn throughout most of each year. Further development of routine culture and juvenile growout techniques ultimately aimed at commercial aquaculture was initiated last year with support from the California Sea Grant College Program. Profitable commercial ventures culturing various flatfish species already exist in other parts of the world, but development of a flatfish culture industry in California confronts unique challenges. Two challenges in particular are the relatively high cost of energy and stringent environmental regulations. To meet these challenges, a culture system built around recirculation technology is being developed that would allow for an energy-efficient industrial-like approach to the culture of California halibut while minimizing environmental impacts. © 2003 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.