Two-stage farming of snakehead achieves high yields
The snakehead fish, also known as snakehead murrel or black fish, has high economic value, with the current selling price at 15-20 yuan/kg. Using the "two-stage method" of intensive pond farming for snakehead, we achieve a net income of 0.9-1.2 ten thousand yuan per mu. Snakehead is a fairly common fish in China, and many people like to eat it.
High-yield farming of snakehead using the "two-stage method"
1. Pond construction requirements: Generally, any adult fish pond can be used for farming, and the pond bottom is best if muddy. The perimeter of the pond should be raised by 0.5 m with bricks, fencing or plastic netting to prevent the snakehead from escaping. The pond water depth should preferably be 1-1.5 m, the water source must be sufficient, neutral or slightly alkaline, and the water temperature should not exceed 30°C. Fingerling ponds should preferably be 500-1000 sq m, and adult fish ponds 2000-4000 sq m, and micro-flow aquaculture is best. One fifth of the water surface should be planted with water hyacinth or alligator weed, etc., to provide hiding and shade for the snakehead. The water inlet hole should be set in the pond wall 30 cm above the water surface, to prevent the snakehead from escaping against the current when water is added.
2. Pond clearing and disinfection: Before stocking, first drain the pond water, remove part of the silt, and keep the mud thickness at 20 cm. Use 100 kg of quicklime per mu of pond for dry pond clearing and disinfection.
3. Fry and fingerling stocking: In the first stage, large-size fingerlings are intensively reared in the fingerling pond. In early September, snakehead fry with an average individual weight of 43 g are intensively reared so that in 8 months they grow into large-size snakehead fingerlings of 150 g, at a stocking density of 7500 fish per mu. In the second stage, in early May of the following year, the large-size fingerlings reared in the first stage are put into the adult fish pond for intensive culture, at a stocking density of 450-500 fish per mu. Before stocking, both snakehead fry and fingerlings should be soaked in 3-4% salt water for 10-20 minutes.
4. Feed feeding: Snakehead is a carnivorous, ferocious fish, and the key to successful farming lies in feed feeding. If feed is insufficient, cannibalism becomes serious. At present, feed sources are mainly live bait (small tilapia, small river fish, topmouth gudgeon, loach, small shrimp, etc.) and artificial compound feed. If intensively farmed snakehead are all fed live fish, the cost is high, so they must be trained to eat artificial compound feed. Training starts from a young age, by the method of: mixing 80% minced trash fish meat with 20% flour or other binder to make pelleted feed. At the start of training, this feed can be mixed with water fleas and fed, gradually reducing the amount of live bait such as water fleas, until finally no water fleas are used and only artificial compound pelleted feed is fed. Later, a gradual transition can be made to daily ration feed. The daily ration uses pelleted feed with a crude protein content above 40%.
Reference formula: animal feed (blood meal, offal from livestock, poultry and aquatic products, fish meal, etc.) 50%, plant feed (wheat bran, corn flour, etc.) 48%, bone meal 2%. Feed once each day at 7-8 am and 17-18 pm. Daily feeding amount: in the season of vigorous fish growth, 5-8% of the standing fish weight; in other seasons, 3-5%. The actual feeding amount should be flexibly controlled according to season, weather, fish activity and feeding conditions. The feed can be placed in a basket and hung into the pond for the snakehead to feed on.
5. Water quality regulation: Water should be added once every 10-20 days, each time adding 20-30 cm. In summer and autumn, change the water once every 5-7 days, and it is even better if micro-flow can be maintained.
6. Fish disease prevention and control: For saprolegniasis, 0.1 mg/kg bleaching powder and 0.5 mg/kg methylene blue mixture can be splashed over the whole pond; for ichthyophthiriasis, 0.1-0.2 mg/kg mercurous nitrate can be splashed over the whole pond; for myxosporidiosis, 0.25-0.5 mg/kg crystallized trichlorfon can be splashed over the whole pond. Ordinarily, every 10-15 days, 20-30 mg/kg bleaching powder can be splashed over the whole pond, with good disease prevention effect.
7. Timely harvesting: When the snakehead reaches a size of more than 500 g, it can be harvested for market. If only part is to be harvested, besides seine netting, you can also, based on the snakehead's preference for flowing water, flush new water into the pond and set a net at the outlet, so that they jump into the net and are caught. If all are to be harvested, drain the pond water and use a mud pusher to turn the snakehead out of the mud.
How to farm snakehead well
1. Pond construction: Choose an east-west oriented, rectangular pond, with a mud bottom, pond depth 2-2.5 m, water depth 1.5-2 m, and anti-escape facilities at the inlet and outlet; apply 100-150 kg of quicklime per mu 15 days before farming for thorough disinfection.
2. Fingerling stocking: Before the fingerlings are put into the pond, soak them in 3%-5% salt water for 10-15 minutes, then put them into the pond. For fingerlings with a body length of 10-14 cm, the stocking density is 9000-10000 fish per mu; for fingerlings of 16-20 cm, the stocking density is 8000 fish per mu.
3. Daily management: Pay attention to observing the snakehead's feeding, activity, disease trends and environmental changes. In spring, change 4/5 of the pond water each week; in the high-temperature season, do a small water change every 3 days and a large water change every 7 days. Install anti-escape nets at the inlet and outlet, and it is best for the pond bank to be more than 50 cm above the water surface. The discharged wastewater should undergo necessary wastewater treatment.
4. Feed feeding: The feed for farming snakehead includes artificial compound feed, freshwater or seawater trash fish, and offal after livestock and poultry slaughter. Before feeding trash fish, they need to be sorted, removing fish with hard spines, such as yellow catfish, etc. Before feeding, use tapping as a signal to gather the distant fish near the feeding platform, reducing feed waste. The initial feeding amount is 10% of body weight, and later it can be appropriately reduced to about 5% of body weight. It should be fed one spoonful at a time, so that feed waste is reduced.
Nutritional value of snakehead
Snakehead has high nutritional value, and it has very good dietary therapeutic effects on physical weakness, hypoproteinemia, malnutrition, spleen-stomach qi deficiency, and anemia. Eating snakehead has a very good anti-inflammatory effect on wounds. The meat of snakehead itself is relatively coarse, and compared with other fish its taste is not so good, so it is not very tasty to eat, but if snakehead is used to make soup, then the taste is unparalleled!
Snakehead has very strong vitality, and its meat tastes sweet. It contains large amounts of iron, calcium, phosphorus and various other minerals, and is also rich in nutrients, containing fat, protein, vitamin A, B vitamins, etc. In addition, in every 100 g of snakehead, the protein content can be as high as 20 g, second only to shrimp, and snakehead is easy for the human body to digest and absorb. Regular consumption of snakehead can enhance resistance.
Secondly, snakehead also has medicinal value in invigorating blood and unblocking collaterals, strengthening the spleen and draining dampness, harmonizing the stomach and promoting appetite, and warming the middle and directing qi downward. It has very good nourishing and dietary therapeutic effects on those with weak kidney and spleen, ulcers, edema, asthma, bronchitis, and diabetes; for postpartum pregnant women, it can also tonify deficiency and promote lactation. In the chilly winter, the taste of snakehead is especially delicious. Regular consumption of snakehead can not only strengthen the body but also help with weight loss, help lower blood pressure and blood lipids, and make people live longer. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that snakehead can both tonify deficiency and warm the middle and direct qi downward, and promote diuresis and reduce swelling. Plainly cooked snakehead has a very good effect on treating gastrointestinal bleeding and vomiting and nausea.
Snakehead farming in China is still fairly common, and there are many methods of farming snakehead. When farming, farmers should not only constantly innovate on existing techniques and methods, but also research and develop new techniques, so as to obtain more profit.