How much do black carp fry cost now, how big can they grow in a year, and what do they eat?

Black carp is a fish with a bluish color, mainly distributed in the plains south of the Yangtze River in China, and is one of the “four major Chinese carps” of freshwater aquaculture in China. So how much do its fry cost? How big can they grow in a year? What do they eat? From the Wuhan aquatic products market we learned that the price of black carp fry is generally around 0.1-0.5 yuan each, mainly determined by factors such as fry size, purchase quantity, and variety quality. The stocking rate of black carp in the market depends on pond conditions and feeding management levels. Intensive culture ponds generally stock 1500-2000 fry per mu, while extensive culture ponds stock 500-1000 fry per mu. In actual production, to increase yield per unit area, reasonable polyculture of multiple species and sizes of fingerlings is often practiced.

How big can black carp fry grow in a year?

From Uncle Wang, a snakehead farmer in Wuhan, we learned that snakehead grows fast, reaching 3-5 kg at 2-3 winters of age, with the largest individuals reaching 70 kg, and common individuals in the Yangtze River weighing about 15-20 kg. Sexual maturity is reached at 4-5 years of age. They breed from April to July in places with higher flow velocity in the main channel of rivers, and after reproduction they often gather in river bends and lakes connected to rivers to fatten up, overwintering in deep water in winter.

1. The age at first maturity for Yangtze River black carp is 3-6 years, generally 4-5 years, with males maturing 1-2 years earlier. Mature females are generally about 1 m long and weigh about 15 kg. Mature males are generally about 900 mm long and weigh about 11 kg. The breeding season is from May to July. A general rise in river water level can stimulate spawning. Spawning activity is rather scattered and lasts for a long time.

2. Black carp grows the fastest among the “four major Chinese carps”. For black carp in Hukou, Jiangxi, growth is fastest at 1-4 years of age, and at 5-6 years of age they gain an average of more than 3.7 kg per year. Males gain about 1 kg less per year on average than females.

What do black carp fry eat?

Black carp usually inhabit the middle and lower layers of the water, feeding mainly on river snails, mussels, clams, and corbicula, and also preying on shrimp and insect larvae. At the fry stage, they mainly feed on zooplankton.

Appendix: Feed formulas for black carp

1. 40% hay meal, 30% silkworm pupae, 10% rapeseed cake, 20% barley, feed conversion ratio 3.

2. 40% green hay, 30% cottonseed cake, 10% soybean cake, 5% rapeseed cake, 5% silkworm pupae, 5% fish meal, 5% naked barley, feed conversion ratio 3.

3. 47.5% soybean cake, 35% fish meal, 1% yeast, 16.5% inorganic salts, etc., feed conversion ratio 2.26.

4. 10% fish meal, 24% soybean cake, 15% rapeseed cake, 15% wheat bran, 20% barley and corn, 6% gluten meal, 6% rapeseed oil phospholipids, 4% others. Crude protein 29.44%. Cultured species and method: mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, blunt snout bream, etc. Feed conversion ratio 2.07.

5. 5% fish meal, 35% soybean cake, 18% wheat bran, 15% corn, 10% native flour, 5% yeast, 10% rapeseed cake, 0.15% multivitamins, 1% inorganic salts, 1% soybean oil. Crude protein 27.4%. Cultured species and method: mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp, bighead carp, etc. Feed conversion ratio 2.51.

6. 5% fish meal, 5% silkworm pupae, 14% soybean cake, 43% rapeseed cake, 10% corn, 14% wheat bran, 5% inorganic salts, 2% fish oil, 0.5% lysine, 0.2% methionine, 0.3% multivitamins, 1% binder. Crude protein 30%. Cultured species and method: mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, etc. Feed conversion ratio 2.1-2.2.

7. 6% fish meal, 2% blood meal, 12% soybean cake, 20% rapeseed cake, 20% cottonseed cake, 6% rice bran cake, 15% barley, 15% corn gluten meal, 4% premix additive. Crude protein 31.7%. Cultured species and method: pond culture mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, etc. Feed conversion ratio 2.4.

8. 12% fish meal, 8% silkworm pupae, 1% meat and bone meal, 15% soybean cake, 10% cottonseed cake, 20% rapeseed cake, 10% bran, 10% germ cake, 8% wheat middlings, 6% premix. Crude protein 32%. Cultured species and method: pond culture mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, etc. Feed conversion ratio 2.2.

9. 40% soybean cake, 30% rapeseed cake, 5% compound amino acids, 11% bran, 10% mixed powder, 2% minerals, 2% salt. Crude protein 30.7%. Cultured species and method: pond culture mainly black carp, polycultured with silver carp and bighead carp. Feed conversion ratio 2.1.