Transporting Fingerlings
 Healthy fingerlings can be transported alive for
relatively long distances with proper equipment and
careful handling. Hauling tanks vary in design but should
always be well insulated and equipped with aerators or
agitators and filled with clean, fresh water. When using
tanks deeper than 30 inches or hauling crowded fish loads
it is necessary to use efficient aerators and to have bot-
tled oxygen for emergency backup. Oxygen should be
released through porous diffusers as small bubbles into
the water.
 The number of fingerlings that can be safely hauled
depends on the tank volume, efficiency of the aeration
equipment, length of haul, water temperature, and size
and condition of the fish. Fingerlings should not be fed
for 12 hours prior to long hauls to prevent excessive
buildups of toxic wastes. Oxygen should be maintained
at levels greater than 4-5 ppm and the temperature should
be kept cool if possible (about 60 0 to 65 F). Some pro-
ducers add salt (0.4-0.8 pounds/100 gallons of water) to
transport tanks to reduce stress. Suggested loading den-
sities are presented in Table 7. If fingerlings are
transported in conventional hauling equipment, be sure
to keep them out of the agitator or aerator by screening
all intakes with '/6 inch mesh.


Table 7 Recommended loading densities for hauling
 fingerlings. Densities are for water temperature
 at 650 F and ideal aeration; reduce numbers
 by 25% for each 10 o F rise in temperature.
 Transport Time (hours)
 Number of Fish 8 hrs 12 hrs 16 hrs
 per pound
 Load Density
 (pounds fish/gallon water)
 1 6.3 5.6 4.8
 2 5.9 4.8 3.5
 4 5.0 4.1 3.0
 50 3.5 2.5 2.1
 125 3.0 2.2 1.8
 250 2.2 1.8 1.5
 500 1.8 1.7 1.3
 1,000 1.3 1.0 0.7
 10,000 0.2 0.2 0.2


 Catfish fry and small fingerlings can be shipped in 3-mil
 polyethylene bags for short distances. Bags should have
 four corners to prevent fish from congregating and suf-
 focating in collapsed corners. Bags are doubled and par-
 tially filled with water before placing fry in them, then
 filled with oxygen (in a volume ratio of 3 units oxygen:
 1 unit water) and securely tied with rubber bands or
 string.


 RAISING FOOD FISH

 Rearing Facilities

Pond Construction
 Pond culture is the most common type and often the
most productive way to raise catfish for marketing as
food. The number, size, depth, and shape of ponds
suitable for a given area are often limited by the local
topography, soil type, and available water supplies. In
areas with moderate topographical relief and nonporous
soils, embankment or hill ponds are often constructed by
building dams or earthen dikes across streams or runoff
basins. Areas with flat terrain or porous soils are generally
more suitable for leveed or excavated ponds, constructed
by cutting basins into the water table. In most states where
catfish are commercially produced, good conditions
generally exist for embankment and/or excavated ponds
ranging in size from about 1 to 20 acres or more. In
Florida, however, prevailing geological conditions are
generally not as suitable for conventional pond types used
for rearing catfish.
 There are three relatively distinct geographical regions
in Florida insofar as pond construction and management
is concerned. These regions are west Florida (the panhan-
dle east to about Monticello), north Florida (north of
Ocala), and central and south Florida (south of Ocala).
These rough divisions correspond to general features of
the topography, soil types, water availability, and natural
fertility, but it should be realized that considerable local
variation exists throughout the state. Limited areas of the
panhandle have relatively impermeable hardpan clay soils
that support embankment ponds, which are currently the
most productive for raising catfish in the state. Many
areas of peninsular Florida have widely-fluctuating water
tables and relatively porous substrates and are not suitable
for embankment ponds; standing fresh waters in these
areas are generally in the form of natural solution lakes,
swamps, and excavated or leveed ponds. The diversity
of soil types and vegetation in peninsular Florida results
in considerable variation between sites with respect to
nutrient availability and productivity.
 Because of the diversity of geological and climatic con-
ditions throughout the state, it is impossible to provide
uniform guidelines for pond construction in Florida.
Before attempting to construct a pond, one should make
a careful assessment of the topography, soil, water
availability and chemistry, nutrient content, and other
physical features of the proposed site to determine the
most appropriate type of pond for the area. In general,
traditional embankment ponds formed by damming
streams or runoff areas in sloping valleys, ravines, or
other hilly terrains are possible mainly in northwest
Florida. In other regions of the state, ponds that are most
promising for catfish culture would be of the excavated