Cobia Fish Aquaculture

Cobia Fish Characteristics

• Cobia is a high-value marine migratory pelagic finfish, distributed worldwide in tropical, subtropical, and warm-temperate waters.

Cobia Breeding and Spawning

• Wild caught sub-adults (5-6 kg) are developed into broodstock in sea cages.
• Gravid males and females are identified through cannulation and tagging since sexual dimorphism is not distinct in this species.
• Mature fishes (8-10 kg and above) with female intra-ovarian egg diameter above 700 μm are transferred to the spawning tank (>60 tonne capacity) for spawning induction with a female: male ratio of 1:2.
• Spawning is induced through a single injection of HCG (500 IU/kg body weight for female and 250 IU/kg body weight for males).

Egg Incubation and Larval Rearing

• Eggs (0.5-2.5 million) are incubated in 2 tonne capacity tanks at a stocking density of 200-500 eggs/litre, which hatch within 18-22 hours and develop to larvae in 60-72 hours.
• Larval rearing is carried out in 2-5 tonne capacity tanks at a stocking density of 5-10 nos/litre with mild aeration using the green water culture technique.
• Newly hatched larvae are fed on enriched rotifer, and inert feed is started from the 15th day and switched entirely to artificial feed from 20 days dph.
• Size grading is done every third day to avoid/reduce cannibalism.

Metamorphosis and Breeding Technology

• The metamorphosis of the larvae takes 18-21 days.
• The breeding technology is mainly confined to the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala.