Profession aquaculture husbandry manager

Aquaculture husbandry managers specialise in the husbandry of ongrowing aquatic species, especially in the feeding, growth, and stock management processes.

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Personality Type

Knowledge

  • Rates of growth assessment

    The different methods used to evaluate the growth of most important cultivated species.

  • Water currents

    Understand impact of water currents on fish farms, in cages, ponds, lagoons and rivers.

  • Aquaculture cultivation equipment

    Understand aquaculture cultivation equipment drawings and plans

  • Husbandry and harvesting effects on aquatic resources

    Understand husbandry and harvesting effects on aquatic resources, fish, molluscs and crustaceans.

  • Fish biology

    The study of fish, shellfish or crustacean organisms, categorized into many specialised fields that cover their morphology, physiology, anatomy, behaviour, origins and distribution.

  • Fish harvesting methods

    Knowledge of up-to-date fish harvesting methods.

  • Fish welfare regulations

    The set of rules that apply in fish harvesting methods which ensure fish well-being.

  • Biosecurity

    Be aware of the general principles of the concept of bio-security and in particular, the disease prevention rules to be implemented in case of epidemics endangering public health.

  • Aquaculture production planning software

    The functioning principles and usage of a software dedicated to the planning of aquculture production.

  • Animal welfare legislation

    The legal boundaries, codes of professional conduct, national and EU regulatory frameworks and legal procedures of working with animals and living organisms, ensuring their welfare and health.

  • Escapee contingency plans

    The procedures to follow in case there are escapees from cage systems.

  • Fish grading

    The method of how fish are graded according to their different characteristics: specification, size, quality and condition.

  • Incidents and accidents recording

    The methods to report and record incidents and accidents in the workplace.

Skills

  • Ensure aquaculture personnel health and safety

    Make sure that health and safety procedures have been established and followed across all aquaculture facilities including cages. Ensure that personnel and general public are instructed and all work activities are carried out according to relevant health and safety regulations.

  • Develop stock health programmes

    Develop a health and welfare programme for those aquatic resources under cultivation, in consultation with the fish health specialist

  • Supervise pest and disease control

    Scout for pest damage, order pesticides as needed and within given budget, supervise mixing and application of pesticides, maintain records of pesticide application.

  • Control aquatic production environment

    Assess the impact of biological conditions such as algae and fouling organisms by managing water intakes, catchments and oxygen use.

  • Collaborate with animal related professionals

    Collaborate with veterinary and other animal related professionals through communication of animal details, case records and summary reports orally or via written or electronic transfer.

  • Ensure compliance with aquaculture standards

    Ensure that operations comply with standards for sustainable aquaculture.

  • Manage water flows and catchments

    Manage water flows and catchments in ponds, lagoons and sluices.

  • Assess cage water quality

    Analyse the quality of water by monitoring the state of temperature and oxygen, among other parameters.

  • Identify risks in aquaculture facilities

    Identify the hazards and evaluate the risks to health and safety in aquaculture facilities.

  • Plan aquatic resources feeding regimes

    Make the appropriate operations to ensure aquatic resources for feeding regimes, taking into consideration farming constraints:set up fish feeding regimes, check animal feeding behaviour and operate computerised feed systems.

  • Manage aquatic resources stock production

    Set up a farm stock production spreadsheet and feed budget (feeding, growth, biomass, mortality, FCR, harvesting). Monitor and maintain stock production.

  • Monitor feeding systems

    Make sure that feeders, feeding system and monitoring instruments are working. Analyse feedback from the instruments.

  • Implement fin fish feeding regimes

    Implement daily fin fish feeding regimes to take account of environmental variations. Check feeding regimes are followed through the accurate implementation of feeding procedures. Implement adjustments to feeding regimes to take account of fluctuations in production performance and variations in environmental conditions. Control specialist feeding regimes to support specified production requirements. Investigate changes in feeding behaviour to determine cause and required corrective action.

  • Calculate aquatic resources growth rate

    Calculate and forecast growth rates. Monitor and assess growth and biomass taking mortality into account, based on the different methods of growth assessment.

  • Write work-related reports

    Compose work-related reports that support effective relationship management and a high standard of documentation and record keeping. Write and present results and conclusions in a clear and intelligible way so they are comprehensible to a non-expert audience.

  • Supervise waste disposal

    Supervise disposal of biological waste and chemical waste according to regulations.

  • Develop fish health and welfare management plans

    Develop a plan which lists risks from outdoor factors, such as predators, and pests.

  • Supervise waste water treatments

    Supervise waste water treatment according to environmental regulations.

  • Manage work

    Supervise, instruct and plan work for teams or individual members of the team. Set up time schedules and make sure they are followed.

  • Handle veterinary emergencies

    Handle unforeseen incidents concerning animals and circumstances which call for urgent action in an appropriate professional manner.

  • Interpret scientific data to assess water quality

    Analyse and interpret data like biological properties to know the quality of water.

  • Maintain aquaculture equipment

    Supervise and maintain aquaculture equipment and machinery, such as containment systems, lifting gear, transportation gear, disinfection equipment, heating equipment, oxygenation equipment, electrical equipment, air lift pumps, submersible pumps, live fish pumps, vacuum pumps.

  • Monitor fish mortality rates

    Monitor fish mortalities and assess possible causes.

  • Ensure cage safety requirements are followed

    Ensure that personnel comply with cage safety requirements.

  • Monitor the use of resources in production

    Observe and check the use of resources such as food, oxygen, energy, water in the production process.

  • Implement contingency plans for escapees

    Carry out contingency plans for cage escapees. Carry out fish capture escape operations.

Optional knowledge and skills

check diving equipment develop outreach training plans maintain diving equipment communicate in english in a competent way deliver online training operate small craft critique the dive with the dive team perform diving interventions operate an emergency communication system prepare for small craft operation train employees communicate verbal instructions have computer literacy evaluate training communicate by telephone organise training provide on-site training in aquaculture facilities identify training needs code of conduct for responsible fisheries use communication devices use a computer conduct fish mortality studies speak different languages diving operation requirements

Source: Sisyphus ODB