Course Description:
The course starts by two short introductory chapters presenting some basics on (1) the osmotic regulation in aquatic organisms and (2) respiration and circulation respectively aiming at better understanding the main chapter on (3) water quality in aquaculture. The first chapter tackles the concept of osmosis, some basics in chemistry and how it applies to living organisms (both invertebrates and vertebrates). The second chapter tackles some basics on the properties of gases in water before describing the specificities of the aquatic respiration (anatomy and physiology of organs involved in aquatic organisms) and how it links to circulation e.g. how gases are transported in the blood. The last and main chapter tackles the different aspects of water quality in aquaculture. We put an emphasize on the importance of good water quality to support survival, welfare, growth of aquaculture fish. The main water parameters including salinity, temperature, pH, oxygen, carbon dioxide, alkalinity, hardness, ammonia are described among others. The course explains why these parameters are important, how they interact with each other, how they can be measured and monitored in aquaculture, what are the effects on aquaculture fish depending on species, how the water quality can be maintained using different devices.
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to
- define the basics of osmotic regulation in aquatic organisms
- apply basics of chemistry in the aquaculture context
- describe the anatomo-physiology basics of fish respiration and circulation
- define, measure and monitor the main water parameters in aquaculture
- identify the effects of bad quality parameters on fish health, welfare, growth and survival
- use some devices to produce/maintain/strip out water parameters and describe high-tech methods used in the industry.
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