Profession aquaculture hatchery technician

Aquaculture hatchery technicians operate and control all aspects of the hatchery production processes, from broodstock management to pregrowing juveniles.

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Personality Type

• Enterprising / Realistic
• Realistic / Investigative

Knowledge

• 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.

• Green water incubation technology

  The green water incubation technology used during aquaculture hatchery.

• Aquaculture reproduction

  The techniques used to induce spawning, spawning on nests, stripping using appropriate techniques for specific species of fish, molluscs, crustaceans and others. The environmental control of spawning, the use of hormones to induce reproduction and the broodstock recruitment by genetic selection.

• Plankton production

  The methods, characteristics and equipment used to cultivate phytoplankton, microalgae and live prey such as rotifers or Artemia with advanced techniques.

• Sanitation measures for aquaculture hatchery production

  Standards of sanitation and cleanliness essential to effective control of fungi and other parasites under intensive culture conditions.

• 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.

Skills

• Carry out maintenance of aquaculture equipment

  Maintain aquaculture equipment and identify equipment needs. Carry out routine maintenance and minor repairs as needed.

• Manage capture broodstock operations

  Plan and conduct wild broodstock capture and quarantine wild broodstock if necessary. Monitor the collection of larvae or juveniles from environment. Control the use of appropriate techniques for the specific species i.e. fish, molluscs, crustaceans or others.

• Carry out hatchery production processes

  Collect naturally spawned fish eggs, eliminate egg adhesiveness, incubate eggs until hatching, hatch and maintain newly born larvae, monitor larvae status, carry out early feeding and rearing techniques of the cultured species.

• Manage animal biosecurity

  Plan and use appropriate biosafety measures to prevent transmission of diseases and ensure effective overall biosecurity. Maintain and follow biosecurity procedures and infection control when working with animals, including recognising potential health issues and taking appropriate action, communicating site hygiene control measures and biosecurity procedures, as well as reporting to others.

• Monitor water quality

  Measure water quality: temperature, oxygen, salinity, pH, N2, NO2,NH4, CO2, turbidity, chlorophyll. Monitor microbiological water quality.

• Monitor feeding systems

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

• Monitor fish health status

  Monitor the health of fish, based on feeding and general behaviour. Interpret environmental parameters and analyse mortalities.

• Screen live fish deformities

  Screen for deformities in live fish including larvae

• Carry out feeding operations

  Carry out manual feeding. Calibrate and operate automatic and computerised feeding systems.

• Maintain hatchery records

  Carefully maintain hatchery production records and inventory. Maintain accurate hatchery records including the preparation of health documents for the transport of juveniles.

• Enforce sanitation procedures

  Ensure standards of sanitation and cleanliness essential to effective control of fungi and other parasites under intensive culture conditions. Obtain uncontaminated fish and eggs by strict sanitary procedures and avoidance of carrier fish. Supervise the isolation and identification of the agent with specific immune antiserum.

• Handle broodstock

  Handle wild and cultured broodstock. Quarantine wild and cultured broodstock. Select individuals for culture and/or fattening.

• Maintain the production of juveniles at the nursery stage

  Maintain the production of juveniles at the nursery stage using advanced high density production techniques

• Monitor hatchery production

  Monitor and maintain hatchery production, monitoring stocks and movements.

• Interpret scientific data to assess water quality

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

• Induce spawning of cultured aquaculture species

  Induce spawning using appropriate techniques for specific cultured species of fish, molluscs, crustaceans or others. Determine sexual maturity of broodstock, using appropriate techniques as indicated for cultured species of fish, molluscs and crustaceans. Control broodstock sexual cycle. Use hormones to induce reproduction.

• Carry out waste water treatment

  Perform waste water treatment according to regulations checking for biological waste and chemical waste.

• Operate hatchery recirculation system

  Efficiently operate a hatchery recirculation system for specified aquatic organisms

• Cultivate plankton production

  Cultivate phytoplankton and microalgae. Cultivate live prey such as rotifers or Artemia with advanced techniques.

• Preserve fish samples for diagnosis

  Collect and preserve larval, fish and mollusc samples or lesions for diagnosis by fish disease specialists.

• 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.

• Condition broodstock

  Incubate eggs until hatching. Assess quality of eggs. Inspect fish eggs. Remove dead, unviable, and off-colour eggs using a suction syringe. Produce eyed eggs. Hatch and maintain new-born larvae.

Optional knowledge and skills

Source: Sisyphus ODB