Science Centres: Fisheries

Kingfish reared from the selective breeding programme. (Photo: NIWA)

NIWA has achieved an important milestone in its selective breeding programme for new aquaculture species. We’ve now bred from first generation captive kingfish that were themselves produced from eggs at NIWA’s Bream Bay Aquaculture Park in Ruakaka, Northland.

“This breakthrough means that kingfish rearing no longer depends on catching wild fish. We can now complete the entire life cycle of this species in captivity and fully control breeding,” says Dr Michael Bruce, Aquaculture Leader of the National Centre for Fisheries & Aquaculture.

“It’s the first step towards controlling pedigree in kingfish and will eventually become the cornerstone of New Zealand’s marine finfish aquaculture industry, just as stock managers and breeders are the cornerstone of New Zealand’s renowned dairy and racehorse bloodstock industries. The ultimate aim is to fully control breeding so that the offspring have predictable traits, such as good growth and feed utilisation, and disease resistance. We estimate that, by selecting for traits such as growth, performance can be improved by as much as 10–20% per generation.”

The $4.6 million selective breeding research programme aims to develop broodstock for three new key high value species: yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi), groper (hapuka, Polyprion oxygeneios) and paua (abalone, Haliotis iris). It’s supported by industry and the Foundation for Science, Research & Technology.