Intensive pond shrimp aquaculture produces a large quantity of organic deposits due to uneaten food and fecal matter. In this study, a laboratory feeding trial was conducted to assess the potential of using bottom-feeding mullets (Mugil cephalus) to reduce the negative impacts of marine shrimp farming. First, ingestion and absorption by M. cephalus of organic deposits collected from the pond culture of white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) were quantified for various sizes of mullets. Twenty-four 80 L flow-through aquariums were stocked with five mullets each for the feeding trial. Subsequently, a polyculture experiment with L. vannamei and M. cephalus was conducted with six different densities of medium sized (18.0 ± 4.1 g ind⁻¹) mullets cultured with shrimp (ML-0, ML-1, ML-2, ML-3, ML-4, and ML-5 corresponding to ratios of fish to shrimp of 0:300, 1:300, 2:300, 3:300, 4:300, and 5:300, respectively). The results showed that, in the feeding trial, the specific growth rate (SGR) of small and medium mullets was significantly higher than that of large mullets, and SGR was negatively correlated with mullet body weight. Medium mullets had the highest ingestion rate, whereas small mullets had the highest feces production rate. The organic matter and N assimilation efficiency values of medium mullets were highest (60.7% and 82.2%, respectively). The fish removed 0.62 g ind⁻¹ d⁻¹ of organic matter and 0.043 g ind⁻¹ d⁻¹ of organic N from the enriched sediment. In the polyculture experiment, the survival rate and yield of white shrimp in treatment ML-4 (96.4% ± 0.8% and 5.2 ± 0.2 kg, respectively) were higher than those in the other treatments, and the survival rate was significantly higher than those of the ML-0 and ML-2 groups (P < 0.05). During the polyculture experiment, mullet density significantly affected the water environment. Overall, the best survival rate and yield of shrimp were achieved at the density of 4:300. These results indicate that mullets as detritivores can effectively ingest and absorb organic deposits generated by white shrimp culture. Additionally, these findings show that polyculture of mullets at suitable size and density does not lead to decreased yield of white shrimp; instead it increases shrimp survival and food utilization efficiency and improves the water quality of the system. Thus, shrimp-mullet co-culture should be promoted to improve the health and sustainability of intensive shrimp aquaculture.

由于未食用的食物和粪便，集约化池塘虾养殖会产生大量有机沉积物。在这项研究中，进行了一项实验室饲喂试验，以评估使用底部饲喂鱼（Mugil cephalus）减少海虾养殖的负面影响的潜力。首先，针对各种大小的of鱼，对从白对虾（南美白对虾）的池塘养殖中收集的有机沉积物的头状支原体的摄取和吸收进行了定量。向二十四个80 L流通式水族箱放养五只鱼，每只鱼都进行饲养试验。随后，与L进行混养实验。南美白对虾和头颅分枝杆菌用六种不同密度的中型（18.0±4.1 g ind ^{- 1}）鱼与虾（ML-0，ML-1，ML-2，ML-3，ML-4和ML-5对应比例）养殖鱼到虾的比例分别为0：300、1：300、2：300、3：300、4：300和5：300）。结果表明，在饲养试验中，中小型鱼的比生长率（SGR）显着高于大型鱼，而SGR与body鱼体重呈负相关。中号鱼的摄食率最高，而小号lets鱼的粪便产生率最高。中鱼的有机质和氮同化效率最高（分别为60.7％和82.2％）。鱼去除了0.62 g ind ^-1 d ^-1富集沉积物中的有机质含量为0.043 g ind ^-1 d ^-1。在混养实验中，ML-4处理的白虾成活率和产量（分别为96.4％±0.8％和5.2±0.2 kg）高于其他处理，并且成活率明显高于其他处理ML-0和ML-2组（P <0.05）。在混养实验中，鱼密度显着影响水环境。总体而言，在4：300的密度下，虾的成活率和产量均达到了最佳。这些结果表明，作为鱼的鱼可以有效地摄取和吸收白虾养殖产生的有机沉积物。此外，这些发现表明，以适当的大小和密度进行鱼的混养不会导致白虾产量下降。相反，它提高了虾的存活率和食物利用效率，并改善了系统的水质。因此，应促进虾-鱼共养，以改善集约化虾养殖的健康和可持续性。