Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** largemouth bass (LMB) is a…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** largemouth bass (LMB) is a high-value freshwater aquaculture species with a rapidly expanding food fish market in north america. However, current rearing practices depend on uncontrollable pond-based technologies plagued by high mortality, especially during the early life stages (i.e., EGG to early fingerlings). As such, complete indoor intensive culture of LMB would improve production yields by circumventing the high rates of mortality associated with these initial pond stages. Indoor growing technologies that embrace conditions for optimal growth and survival would also enable year-round sustainable production of LMB fingerlings to supply the rapidly expanding food fish industry. Our long-term goal is to develop intensive indoor-rearing strategies for LMB during critical early life stages. To accomplish this goal, we will use basic and applied research to better understand the morphological, physiological, and molecular underpinnings associated with the development of LMB. Objectives are to: i) identify yolk-SAC FRY stocking density and prey density that maximizes hatchery production; II) determine the influence of photoperiod, light intensity, and tank color on growth and development; III) elucidate ontogenetic development of digestive system morphology and function; IV) optimize first-feeding to fingerling dietary regimens using live feed and artificial diets; v) train students in aquaculture; and VI) disseminate results to industry, government, and educational institutions. The overall success criterion will be to further intensify the production of healthy FRY/fingerlings to enhance production, sustainability, and national food security. Results can be applied to other species of national scope, resulting in expansions in sector-wide production and economic growth.