Integrated farming of broiler chickens with fish and shrimp in brackishwater ponds

Abstract

An experiment on the integrated farming of broiler chickens with milkfish (Chanos chanos), tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and shrimp (Penaeus indicus) in brackishwater ponds was conducted in 1,000-m² ponds of the SEAFDEC Research Station at Leganes, Iloilo, Philippines. Tested were varying densities of tilapia (500, 1,000, 1,500 and 2,000 for Treatments I-IV, respectively) with fixed densities of 5,000 shrimp and 200 milkfish per 1,000-m² pond. Poultry houses were constructed at the middle of each pond so that fresh chicken wastes would drop directly to the pond. Each unit was stocked with 90 broiler heads of three size groups, or a total of 180 heads for 120 pond culture days. Stocking, transfer and harvest of poultry were done every two weeks. Results indicated an average net production of shrimp of 19.15 to 28.38 kg/1,000 m²; milkfish, 7.51 to 11.74 kg/1,000 m²; tilapia, 33.68 to 66.97 kg/1,000 m² and chicken broilers, 180.90 to 217.39 kg/1,000 m². Statistical analysis revealed that the best net production of tilapia was obtained at a stocking density of 15,000/ha.