Buying juveniles and broodstock for ponds and dams

Prior to purchasing fish for aquaculture the water should be checked for its suitability for the selected species i.e. temperature, salinity, pH, etc. It is also a good idea to check with your Regional Aquaculture Development Officer to see if there are any translocation issues relating to the species which you wish to stock, as the spreading of introduced species is restricted, i.e., silver perch are not allowed in some areas of the south west. For further information see our translocation pages.

A licence is required by anyone growing species of fish for commercial purposes. For further information on this matter please refer to the pages on ‘Do you need an aquaculture licence"

Transport of Fish and Crayfish:

Fin fish are usually placed into two heavy duty plastic bags with water and pure oxygen. The bags are then tied firmly and placed into a cardboard box for transport. This method is very successful with juvenile fish and juvenile marron (less than one year old). For larger fish, a rigid fish carrier is generally used. The fish carrier is placed onto a trailer and has oxygen pumped through the water and can sometimes have a small filter to assist in the removal of waste products. These cost a lot more and are not as easy to use when transporting live fish. Only relatively small numbers of animals can be transported at any one time.

Once the juveniles are received by the purchaser it is a good idea to place them, while still in the bag, on the edge of the dam or pond they are to be released into for about half an hour. This will allow the water and animals in the bag a chance to acclimatise to the water temperature of the water body they are entering. Ideally, placing the animals on the edge of the dam or pond should be done early in the morning or late in the evening, particularly in summer, so the animals don't over-heat in the bag. Alternatively, small amounts of pond water can be progressively added to the bags. Once the stock has had a chance to acclimatise, they can be released.

Larger marron and yabbies are transported in foam boxes. There are many different methods of packaging freshwater crayfish, but the most common is described here. Ice bricks (frozen water bottles) are placed on the bottom of the box, then a piece of slightly damp foam sheet is placed on top. The animals are placed on top of the foam sheet, and are then covered by another slightly damp foam sheet. Depending upon the size of the animals, they can be layered with sheets of damp foam between each layer. A foam sheet should be placed on top of the animals then the lid taped firmly in place.

When you receive the animals, they should be removed from the box then left to warm in the shade before being moved to the edge of the pond or dam. Never throw the animals into the pond or dam. Normally the animals get quite cool in the boxes during transport and the shock of taking them straight from the box to the water may be too great and may consequently kill the animals.

Suppliers

It is no longer the policy of the Department of Fisheries to list potential suppliers. Many suppliers advertise in the Yellow Pages and trade magazines, ACWA News, Austasia Aquaculture Trade Directory, and Marron Growers Bulletin. In addition, individual industry associations may also be able to supply relevant information.