Animal husbandry – Aquatic animal culturing – Fish culturing
Patent
1995-11-07
1998-08-11
Weiss, John G.
Animal husbandry
Aquatic animal culturing
Fish culturing
119232, A01K 6100
Patent
active
057912904
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention concerns a larval incubator for fish larva culture, comprising a cylindrical water tank with a distribution device, a feed dispenser, a device for altering the gas level in the water, a device for skimming the water surface, a means for supplying clean or regenerated water, and a means for evacuating waste water.
Incubation tanks known in the art generally comprise a clean water supply on the outer edge, near the free surface of the water, and an overflow device for regulating water level in the tank. Certain models also have a skimming device for removing film, which contains lipids and bacteria, from the water surface. A gas removal device can be added to the tank to prevent the water from becoming supersaturated with gas. Theoretically, all tanks also have a feed dispenser. The feed it distributes falls into the tank and the larvae consume part of it, while the rest remains on the bottom of the tank. Such a device has two flaws. First, the larvae closest to the food supply grow more quickly, to the detriment of the others, and thus the resulting batch contains larvae of mixed sizes; secondly, the food that falls to the bottom of the tank is wasted and decomposes, contaminating the water.
Most tanks presently used have opaque black walls. This enables the larva to locate their food supply readily because the contrast makes the food easily distinguishable. However, during the first few days of life, certain fish larvae such as perch (Perca fluviatilis), turbot (Scophthalmus inacimus), and Sparidae (Sparus aurata) shun high intensity light; if placed in an incubator with dark, opaque walls, they swim nervously into the walls to avoid the light coming from the upper part of the tank. Therefore, an ideal incubation tank would have transparent walls during the early larval incubation stage and dark, opaque walls once the larvae outgrow the disorganized swimming pattern.
Each accessory must be independently adapted and attached to tanks presently in use. Moreover, the disadvantages described above provide less than ideal conditions for fish larva culture and have a low success rate.
The present invention eliminates these problems by proposing a simply designed tank with detachable, easily removed accessories, which does not waste food and maintains constant water quality.
This object is achieved by the larval incubator described in the preamble, characterized in that the means for supplying clean or regenerated water to the tank consists of a duct which is located generally along the vertical axis of the tank, which has at least one outlet at its base and which is associated with a means for generating radial, ascending currents in the water in the tank.
According to a preferred embodiment, the means for generating currents in the water comprises blades at the bottom of the tank around a circular crown of adjustable height.
According to one advantageous embodiment, said duct comprises at least one inlet tube for clean or regenerated water, which is connected at one end to a water supply and at the other end to one of the outlets, said tube emptying near the bottom of the tank above the blades in the space defined by the circular crown.
The inlet tube preferably has a detachable nozzle which is equipped with the outlet.
The means for evacuating waste water advantageously consists of an evacuation tube, one end of which is located at the level of the free surface of the water and the other end of which passes through the bottom of the tank and empties outside the tank.
The evacuation tube is advantageously screwed into the bottom of the tank.
The duct advantageously comprises several water inlet tubes arranged around the evacuation tube and connected to it.
According to a preferred embodiment, the water supply and evacuation tubes, the device for generating currents in the water, the gas level modifying device, the skimmer and the feed distribution device are all interconnected and form a detachable unit.
According to a preferred embodiment, a strainer encases the supply tube and the evacua
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Cuddihy Francis K.
Percitech S.A.
Weiss John G.
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