Spawning Induction, Larviculture and Rearing of Mexican Snook Centropomus poeyi (Chávez, 1961)

Abstract

The Mexican snook (Centropomus poeyi) constitutes an essential artisanal fishery in coastal areas of Mexico containing rivers that discharge into the Gulf of Mexico, and it is considered overfished in general; therefore, aquaculture can provide alternatives to this situation. Induced spawning and Larviculture have been developed in our laboratory for this critical endemic species. Using cholesterol-cellulose implants with LHRH-a, spawning is initiated 30 hours after implantation. A total of 9.5 million fertilized eggs were collected, averaging 700.35 μm in diameter. The fertilization rate was 90%, and the hatching rate was 85%. Two hundred thirteen thousand fish were fed according to a protocol generated for this species, using microalgae, rotifers, and Artemia nauplii. Weaning is initiated 15 days post-hatching using a co-feeding regime combining live food and inert diets designed for marine fish. Survival at the end of the larval period was 1.8%, with fish feeding exclusively on artificial food and acclimated to freshwater.