An 11-year veteran of whiteleg shrimp farming shares his secrets to success

Wu Yintian is from Da'ao Town, Xinhui District, Jiangmen City, Guangdong. He has been farming whiteleg shrimp for 11 years and currently has 40 mu of shrimp ponds. In 2013, Wu Yintian succeeded with both shrimp crops, averaging about 600 jin per mu, and thanks to the high shrimp prices in 2013, he made a handsome profit; in addition, the winter greenhouse shrimp are currently growing well.

"Any variety will inevitably see ups and downs in the market, and there will be periods when diseases break out frequently. Paying attention to details and keeping an eye on changes in the farming environment is the primary factor behind my success in shrimp farming." Wu Yintian told reporters that in order to achieve refined management, he and his wife take turns watching over the shrimp ponds, and they personally handle everything related to shrimp farming. As the environment changes and farming becomes increasingly difficult, he has also voluntarily reduced his stocking density, from the previous 70,000-80,000 per mu down to the current 40,000-50,000 per mu, in order to improve the success rate of farming and trade success rate for yield.

After years of farming, Wu Yintian has summed up his own set of shrimp farming principles. Wu Yintian told reporters that, unlike the past when second-generation fry and local fry were commonly chosen, he now prefers first-generation fry, but first-generation fry grow fast and have relatively weaker disease resistance. "First-generation fry grow fast and molt more often, so they also have a greater demand for calcium." Wu Yintian observed that around the first and fifteenth days of each lunar month are often peak molting periods for shrimp, so during those periods he pays close attention to the shrimp's feeding behavior. "Generally, when shrimp show reduced feeding, it is a sign that they are about to molt, and at such times I promptly supplement calcium for these shrimp that are about to molt."

In addition to focusing on calcium supplementation throughout the process, as the shrimp continue to grow, Wu Yintian also varies his farming management at each stage. He divides farming into 3 stages. The first stage is the first 30 days of farming. This stage is an important period for shrimp liver development, and management and drug use need to focus on helping the liver develop. "A white liver indicates good development, while a yellow one indicates poor health." The second stage is from 30-60 days of farming. Although this stage enters the rapid growth period of shrimp, it is also the peak period for feed input. During this time, attention must be paid to controlling the amount of feed, ensuring both the shrimp's growth needs and avoiding overfeeding, so as not to overload the liver, and also preventing leftover feed from polluting the water quality. The third stage is shrimp after 90 days of farming. "At this stage, nitrite and other substances tend to run high, so the focus should be on improving the pond bottom and appropriately increasing the use of microecological preparations and the like."