In the United States, a small but profitable shrimp farming industry is located along the Gulf Coast of Texas with a few coastal farms in South Carolina and Hawaii. Because coastal lands in the U.S. are extremely expensive and highly regulated, expansion of the U.S. shrimp industry along the coasts is nearly impossible. In response to this constraint, shrimp farming at inland sites is now being tested in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Texas, Arizona and California. The inland farms in the U.S. have stocked the Pacific White Shrimp P. vannamei, the preferred culture species in the hemisphere in both coastal farms as well as inland farms. While this species is a true marine species requiring full strength seawater (30-35 ppt) for reproduction, it can be acclimated to and adapts well to low salinity environments. While substantial progress has been made in inland shrimp farming, further success could be achieved through development of a selected stock of shrimp bred for maximum performance in low salinity conditions. This project will apply selective breeding to several genetically independent groups of SPF P. vannamei to develop a Low-salinity tolerant stock. Once developed, commercial quantities of Low-salinity tolerant (LST) P. vannamei broodstock will be supplied to U.S. hatcheries (in Phase II) for commercial production trials. We estimate an immediate market for at least 20,000 Low-salinity tolerant broodstock per year worldwide. OBJECTIVES: This Small Business Innovative Research Phase I project will initiate a selective breeding program with the marine shrimp Penaeus vannamei to enhance its growth performance in low-salinity water. Inland farming of marine shrimp in low salinity waters in the United States is emerging as a major trend for U.S. shrimp production. Inland farms in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas, Kentucky, Arizona and California are producing marine shrimp far from coastal areas. Advantages include lower land and labor costs, reduced marine environmental impacts and regulations and increased biosecurity. Inland shrimp farming is also expanding globally. To date, inland shrimp farms use shrimp stocks developed and adapted to marine seawater systems. This project will initiate a practical breeding program with P. vannamei the preferred culture species for inland farms in the U.S. and abroad. A recent survey by the U.S. Shrimp Growers Association identified development of low-salinity tolerant shrimp as the number 1 priority for U.S. shrimp R&D. High Health Aquaculture is a commercial shrimp breeding company well prepared to undertake such a breeding program and to commercialize and supply the U.S. industry with low salinity tolerant shrimp through implementation of such a breeding program. APPROACH: This project will apply a combined selection breeding strategy using both family selection and within family individual selection for shrimp growth rate and survival in low salinity environments. Breeding experiments will focus on the Pacific White Shrimp, P. vannamei, which is the preferred shrimp culture species in the US. In phase I, multiple individual families will be produced and tested for growth and survival in 1 ppt waters. Best families will be selected for ongrowing to broodstock for phase II breeding efforts
