ReviewNutrients, phytoplankton and harmful algal blooms in shrimp ponds: a review with special reference to the situation in the Gulf of California
Introduction
In tropical and subtropical coastal areas worldwide, no economical activity has evolved as quickly as shrimp farming in the last 15 years. However, such an enormous development has been accompanied by strong controversies on the environmental, economic and social impacts of shrimp farming. Mexico, as well as several nations from Asia and Latin America, has experienced an increased expansion that concerns governmental and non-governmental organizations (Páez-Osuna, 2001a).
Shrimp farming can produce diverse environmental impacts depending on several factors: (a) location of farms; (b) management and use of technology during pond operation; (c) culture surface and scale of production; and (d) depurative capacity of receiving water body. Some effects that can be pointed out are impairment of water quality in receiving water bodies that can result in oxygen depletion, light penetration is diminished because of suspended solids, a hypernutrification that turns into changes of benthic macrofauna and eutrophication of water bodies (Páez-Osuna, 2001b). This paper is a review on the occurrence of nutrients and their relation with the abundance and composition of phytoplankton communities, primary production and algal blooms in shrimp farm pond waters. Additional information is provided in relation with the presence of nutrients in adjacent water bodies that supply and receive water to and from shrimp ponds. Also, phytoplankton species that produce toxic effects are considered. Finally, levels and stoichiometry of nutrients in pond waters as causative agents of change in the structure of phytoplankton communities are discussed.
Section snippets
Study area
The northwest Mexico is situated in the subtropical Pacific subzone, which extends from Baja California southward to about 16° north latitude (Brusca and Wallerstein, 1979; Fig. 1). The presence of many rivers with small drainage basins and a coast climate semi-arid to sub-humid, becoming humid to southeast, are characteristic of this zone (Lankford, 1977). An important feature of the NW coast of Mexico is the presence of numerous coastal lagoons, e.g. from the Colorado River in Sonora to San
Nutrients and stoichiometric ratio in shrimp pond waters
Generally, waters and effluents from shrimp ponds are enriched with suspended solids, organic matter and nutrients (Table 1); concentrations depend mainly on the management (Páez-Osuna, 2001b). In extensive farms, wastes from ponds are scarce, while at semi-intensive farms intermediate loads are discharged. It is clear that depending on the degree of intensity (i.e. stocking density, water use, food and fertilizers), a higher waste load is produced, as well as nitrogen and phosphorus. In
Coastal waters as sources of phytoplankton for shrimp ponds
In most shrimp farms from the Gulf of California, coastal waters are used for supplying shrimp ponds; in some cases water is pumped directly from the coast and in other cases indirectly through coastal lagoons. In the Gulf of California, the most abundant and diverse groups of the phytoplankton are diatoms (415 species) and dinoflagellates (270 species) Licea et al., 1995, Moreno et al., 1996.
Frequently, biomass of small producers is higher than biomass represented by bigger species. In the
Phytoplankton in shrimp ponds
Microalgae from water bodies that supply water are founding the early stages in shrimp farm ponds. Phytoplankton composition and abundance in supply water is modified in shrimp ponds. In some culturing systems, where salinity decreases because of the mixing with fresh water from rivers, there are ponds where diatoms, cyanobacteria, chlorophytes and dinoflagellates dominate, depending on several environmental factors (e.g. light, salinity, temperature and nutrient levels). The occurrence of some
Harmful algal blooms in shrimp ponds
In semi-intensive shrimp ponds, the relation between phytoplankton quality and shrimp development has been demonstrated (Dall et al., 1990). However, since phytoplankton growth is enhanced by the addition of fertilizers, dinoflagellate blooms also develop. In some cases, dinoflagellate blooms are harmless to shrimp; such is the case of the formation of Peridinum balechii red tides, which did not result in a loss of shrimp production (Delgado et al., 1996). In other cases, algal blooms can
Concluding remarks
- 1.
Physicochemical conditions that originate algal blooms in shrimp ponds mainly depend on fertilization, feeding rate and food composition. The objective of pond fertilization is to produce diatom and phytoflagellate blooms; however, inadequate management, contamination and climatic conditions can trigger undesired blooms that lead to a delay in shrimp growth and massive mortality that decreases production.
- 2.
Nutrients that are supplied to shrimp ponds have a direct effect on phytoplankton
Acknowledgements
CONACyT thought Project 0625-N9110 provided financial support. The first author is under scholarship from CONACyT 89906. The authors thank Jorge Ruelas Inzunza for English review of the original manuscript and Sergio Escutia for the information and image about update shrimp mortality in ponds. We also thank Clara Ramı́rez Jáuregui and Jahn Throndsen for their collaboration in facilitating the bibliography, and Germán Ramı́rez Reséndiz for elaborating figures.
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