Micropterus salmoides is a subtropical freshwater fish naturally inhabiting shallow vegetated waters of lakes, ponds, swamps, backwaters, pools of creeks, and small to large rivers in North America. Its distribution comprises St. Lawrence and Great Lakes, Mississippi River basins, and Atlantic and Gulf drainages. In aquaculture, besides being considered an excellent food species, it has been introduced widely as a game fish. Several countries report adverse ecological impact after its introduction. Despite that, it is considered a very promising and valuable freshwater species for consumption, being one of the most economically important aquaculture species in China. Pond culture remains as the dominant production method for M. salmoides, mainly based on monoculture under a high density, high feeding volume, and high water exchange rate. This species has some characteristics considered as advantages for aquaculture, such as excellent flesh quality, no intermuscular bones, rapid growth performance, short culture cycle, and strong adaptability. Despite that, there is still a lack of information considering malformation rates and slaughtering procedures on farms. Thus, further studies are needed to better assess and to improve the welfare of this species.
Note: Due to reaching maturity after the typical age and weight at slaughter, there is no age class "Adults" under FARM in the profile. For information from the wild, the age class “Juveniles” may also refer to ADULTS and vice versa, as the literature does not always specify.
