The Collaborative International Dictionary
aquaculture \aquaculture\ adj. 1. the cultivation of aquatic animals, such as fish or shellfish, or of plants, such as seaweed, in a controlled and sometimes enclosed body of water. The term includes use of either salt or fresh water. It is a form of agriculture, but under water. [PJC] ||
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
Wiktionary
n. The cultivation of aquatic produce such as aquatic plants, fish(,) and other aquatic animals.
WordNet
n. rearing aquatic animals or cultivating aquatic plants for food
Wikipedia
Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the harvesting of wild fish. Broadly speaking, the relation of aquaculture to finfish and shellfish fisheries is analogous to the relation of agriculture to hunting and gathering. Mariculture refers to aquaculture practiced in marine environments and in underwater habitats.
According to the FAO, aquaculture "is understood to mean the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Farming implies some form of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production, such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, etc. Farming also implies individual or corporate ownership of the stock being cultivated." The reported output from global aquaculture operations would supply one half of the fish and shellfish that is directly consumed by humans; however, there are issues about the reliability of the reported figures. Further, in current aquaculture practice, products from several pounds of wild fish are used to produce one pound of a piscivorous fish like salmon.
Particular kinds of aquaculture include fish farming, shrimp farming, oyster farming, mariculture, algaculture (such as seaweed farming), and the cultivation of ornamental fish. Particular methods include aquaponics and integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, both of which integrate fish farming and plant farming.
Aquaculture is a peer-reviewed scientific journal covering research on aquaculture, published by Elsevier. It was established in 1972. The journal Annual Review of Fish Diseases, separately published from 1991 to 1996, was incorporated into Aquaculture following the cessation of its separate publication. Aquaculture is indexed by AGRICOLA, Animal Breeding Abstracts, Aquatic Sciences & Fisheries Abstracts, Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews, CAB Abstracts, and Water Resources Abstracts.
Usage examples of "aquaculture".
The Sentinels are also against large-scale aquaculture, because of the harm to the environment.
There are several aquaculture facilities in the islands that produce trout, salmon and the like.
They say aquaculture produces cheaper food, provides employment and pours money into the economy.
The bus stops were built of tall glass tubes, aquaculture cylinders, murky green soups full of algae and fat, sluggish carp.