Abstract
Integrated multi trophic aquaculture (IMTA) improves the production of aquatic animals by promoting nutrient utilization through different tropical levels. Microorganisms play an important role in elements cycling, energy flow and farmed-species health. The aim of this study was to evaluate how feed types, fresh frozen fish diet (FFD) or formulated diet (FD), influence the microbial community diversity and functionality in both water and sediment in a marine IMTA system. Preferable water quality, higher animal yields and higher cost efficiency were achieved in the FD pond. Feed types changed the pond bacterial community distribution, especially in the rearing water. The FFD pond was dominated with Cyanobacteria in the water, which played an important role in nitrogen fixation through photosynthesis due to the high nitrogen input of the frozen fish diet. The high carbohydrate composition in the formulated diet triggered higher metabolic pathways related to carbon and lipid metabolism in the water of the FD pond. Sediment had significantly higher microbial diversity than the rearing water. In sediment, the dominating genus, Sulfurovum and Desulfobulbus, were found to be positively correlated by network analysis, which had similar functionality in sulfur transformation. The relatively higher rates of antibiotic biosynthesis in the FFD sediment might be related to the pathogenic bacteria introduced by the trash fish diet. The difference in microbial community composition and metabolic pathways may be associated with the different pathways for nutrient cycling and animal growth performance. The formulated diet was determined to be more ecologically and economically sustainable than the frozen fish diet for marine IMTA pond systems.
Highlights
Aquaculture is one of the fastest-growing animal food producing sectors worldwide, and occupies more than half the world’s fish supply while natural fisheries are facing the risk of overexploitation [1,2]
We aimed to evaluate the impact of two types of frequently used feed, namely a formulated diet and a fresh frozen fish diet, on the environmental and economic development in a marine Integrated multi trophic aquaculture (IMTA) pond system
The formulated diet triggered higher metabolic pathways related to carbon and lipid metabolism in the water of the FD pond
Summary
Aquaculture is one of the fastest-growing animal food producing sectors worldwide, and occupies more than half the world’s fish supply while natural fisheries are facing the risk of overexploitation [1,2]. Coastal aquaculture is expanding due to the large demand for marine products for human consumption [3]. Especially polyculture and integrated systems, is widely applied for marine species culture in Southeast China [4]. Specific impacts caused by coastal aquaculture on the environment include excessive water consumption, culture effluents discharge, nutrient pollution, and infection of disease-causing organisms [5]. To reduce the environmental impact of pond aquaculture, it is necessary to increase the feed efficiency and enhance the natural food web availability [6]. Compared to monoculture, integrated multi trophic aquaculture (IMTA) can improve nutrient recovery by providing the feeding niches of different species in one habitant [7]. IMTA is an ecologically sustainable aquatic system which achieves higher production with lower cost [9,10]
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