article · Aquaculture Environment Interactions
Co-culturing whiteleg shrimp with a commercially valuable red strain of Nile tilapia in recirculating aquaculture systems offers significant production advantages. When evaluated against monoculture shrimp fed standard commercial feed, shrimp reared alongside tilapia fed either entirely on tilapia waste or on tilapia waste supplemented with a low commercial diet. Shrimp in co-culture exhibited lower expression of the stress-related antioxidant genes cMnSOD and GPX, reflecting reduced physiological stress compared to monoculture counterparts. Digestive enzyme activity, food utilisation, and overall nutritional status remained unimpaired across all regimes. Furthermore, co-cultured shrimp achieved significantly higher final body weights, with the highest growth observed in the supplemented diet group. Tilapia biowaste can successfully sustain shrimp as a sole food source, demonstrating that this co-culture system supports high growth, lower stress, and efficient resource use.
Aquaculture operations often face high operational costs and environmental concerns associated with commercial feed and waste management. Demonstrating that Nile tilapia waste can nourish high-value whiteleg shrimp without causing physiological stress provides a practical blueprint for recirculating aquaculture systems. This approach allows producers to lower feed expenses, improve waste utilisation, and generate two commercially valuable crops within a single production cycle.
This research applies directly to commercial recirculating aquaculture operators and tropical fish and shrimp producers seeking to cut feed costs and increase yields. Tested under controlled conditions in recirculating systems, the approach demonstrates applied feasibility for integrated multi-trophic aquaculture. Moving from these controlled trials to commercial-scale deployment represents the next step for farm operators aiming to commercialise combined tilapia and shrimp production systems.
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Co-culture of the high-value tropical species whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei and Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus may have significant commercial and environmental benefits. However, feeding regimes and holding conditions must meet the animals' nutritional requirements and minimize stress reactions. In the current study, whiteleg shrimp and a commercially important red strain of Nile tilapia were maintained in monoculture and in co-culture under controlled conditions in a recirculating aquaculture system. Shrimp in monoculture received a commercial food. Shrimp in co-culture either fed only on tilapia waste or on tilapia waste with a low supplement of commercial diet (treatment 'FSD'). To assess the metabolic stress level of shrimp, we measured the relative expression of the antioxidant-related genes cMnSOD and GPX in the abdominal muscles and the activities of digestive proteinases and alkaline phosphatase in the midgut gland. Shrimp in co-culture showed significantly reduced expression of both antioxidants, indicating lower stress levels than monocultured shrimp fed a commercial diet. Digestive enzyme activities, along with hepatosomatic indices and enzyme expression patterns indicate unimpaired food utilization and excellent nutritional status in shrimp across all treatments. Final body weight was significantly higher in shrimp in both co-culture treatments, with highest growth rates in FSD shrimp. Growth rates indicate that tilapia biowaste/faeces can be used as a sole diet for high-value shrimp, irrespective of the feeding regime. Beyond known benefits such as higher yield and efficient resource use, our results show that co-culture of the 2 species is successful in terms of nutritional provision and shrimp health status.
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DOI: 10.3354/aei00229
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