Figure 2
Adult arapaima showing enhanced red coloration during breeding season. Credits: Carlos Martinez, Horse Creek Aquaculture
Source publication
Arapaima Arapaima gigas, also known as paiche and pirarucu, is a large South American freshwater fish with unique biology, favorable aquaculture characteristics, and potential for production in south Florida. This publication provides Arapaima gigas biology, specific culture methods known for each stage of development, and information about disease...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... is necessary for breeding pair selection in commercial aquaculture, but arapaima are difficult to sex visually because they do not display sex-specific external characteristics year-round. However, during the reproductive period, male arapaima scales are redder, especially near the jaw (Figure 2). Arapaima exhibit unilateral gonadal development, making internal examinations important for sexing and determining ripeness. ...
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Citations
... The large Amazonian bony fishes commonly known as arapaima, pirarucu, or paiche (genus Arapaima Müller, 1843) have garnered particular interest for commercial aquaculture development due to their rapid growth rate and high market value (Valladão et al. 2018, Ohs et al. 2021. Also present in the global aquarium trade (Nijman 2010, Magalhães et al. 2017, arapaimas have been captured, cultured, and transported around the world to 28 countries on 5 continents (Pereira et al. 2022 Export of A. gigas from its native range is regulated under CITES as a response to overfishing and declines in native populations. ...
Fish in the South American genus Arapaima Müller, 1843 (hereafter referred to as arapaimas) have attracted interest for commercial aquaculture development thanks to their rapid growth rate and high market value. However, management agencies in the United States have expressed concerns about importing and culturing arapaimas due to records of non-native establishment in certain other countries where arapaimas were released or escaped from captivity. We used the Freshwater Fish Injurious Species Risk Assessment Model (FISRAM) to estimate the probability that arapaimas would be injurious (able to cause harm) to native ecosystems, humans, or the economy of the contiguous United States. Risk assessment model inputs were elicited from arapaima
experts around the world. Model results were sensitive to the estimation of climate suitability for arapaimas within the contiguous United States, with predicted probability of injuriousness ranging from 0.784 down to 0.321 with different climate suitability inputs. Expert assessors predicted that competition and predation on native species would be the most likely mechanism of impact and expressed a high degree of uncertainty about potential for impacts from pathogens and parasites. We concluded that due to the cold sensitivity of these tropically adapted fish, establishment within the contiguous United States would be highly restricted geographically, limiting potential impacts if introduced outside climatically suitable areas. Existing regulations already mitigate risk of escape from aquaculture in areas where establishment is plausible, but further research into arapaima parasites and pathogens would help reduce uncertainties and suggest opportunities to enhance biosecurity measures if needed.
... Arapaima are also pet traded in Europe, North America, South America, and Asia. Demand for juvenile Arapaima as ornamental fish is also high, partly because as obligate air breathers they tolerate hypoxic (low levels of dissolved oxygen) water uninhabitable by other fish (Ohs et al. 2021). As Arapaima were supplied to ornamental fish breeders in other countries, some escaped and established populations in Java and Sumatra in Indonesia (Marková et al. 2020). ...
... Closed recirculating aquaculture systems show promise for increasing survival of fry and juveniles (Burton et al. 2016). Within 14 months after egg hatching, Arapaima attain a marketable size of 10-15 kg (22-33 pounds) and 110-120 cm (43-47 inches) (Núñez 2012;Ohs et al. 2021). ...
