Recirculating aquaculture system for brycon moorei conservation farming

Overview

This solution addresses the conservation challenge of Brycon Moorei (BM), a vulnerable and nationally critically endangered endemic fish species from the Magdalena River watershed in Colombia. BM is migratory and suffers high post-breeding mortality in captivity due to poor water quality in traditional static land ponds. The proposed recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) enables high-density cultivation of BM at up to 30 kg/m³ while maintaining high survival rates, by replicating the flowing river conditions essential to the species. The system can be coupled with a hydroponic unit to create an integrated aquaponic farm, supporting both fish conservation and sustainable plant production.

Technical specifications

• High-density cultivation capacity: Designed to grow BM at densities from 10 kg/m³ up to 30 kg/m³
• Water recirculation system (RAS): Maintains continuously high water quality and generates currents simulating natural flowing river environments
• Aquaponic integration: Hydroponic unit can be coupled to the system to create a closed-loop aquaponic farm
• Tank configuration: Three tanks of 7 m³ each for fish rearing
• Growth performance: BM reaches 400 grams in approximately 90 days from 12-gram fingerlings, enabling four production cycles per year
• Validated pilot systems: Two RAS pilot systems have been developed, with one currently operating at a university in the Bogota Sabana region of Colombia, previously validated with a related species (OM)

Technology readiness level

The technology has been validated through pilot RAS systems successfully used to culture a related fish species, demonstrating the capability to maintain high water quality and simulate river-like conditions. Future validation will involve testing different fish biomass densities from 10 kg/m³ to 30 kg/m³, rearing 12-gram fingerlings to 400 grams in three 7 m³ tanks over a one-year period covering four production cycles. The study will qualitatively and descriptively evaluate fish characteristics, plant performance, and water quality parameters to confirm the system's effectiveness for BM conservation and aquaponic production.