COMPARATIVE STUDIES ON NITROGEN BUDGETS OF CLOSED SHRIMP POLYCULTURE SYSTEMS

April to October, 1997 comparative studies on the nitrogen budgets of closed shrimp polyculture systems showed that, in all the studied polyculture systems, nitrogen from feeds and fertilizers were the main input items, which comprised 70.7%-83.9% of the total input nitrogen, 3.2%-7.4% of which was provided by nitrogen fixation. It was in monoculture enclosures (Y-4, Y-11 and Y-12) that the percentage reached the maximum value. The output nitrogen in harvested products comprised 10.8%-24.6% of total input nitrogen, and the highest percentage, 24.6%, was found in shrimp-fish-tagelus polyculture systems. In shrimp monoculture and shrimp-fish polyculture systems, they were 19.1% and 21.9%, respectively. The nitrogen utilization efficiency was different and varied from 12.2% to 20.1%. The highest, 20.1%, was found in shrimp-fish-tagelus polyculture systems, and the average of 20.0% was found in shrimp-tagelus polyculture systems. The lowest, 12.2%, was found in shrimp monoculture systems. All the nitrogen utilization efficiencies in shrimp-fish systems or shrimp-scallop systems seemed to be higher than that of the monoculture system, but they showed little statistical difference. The main outputs of nitrogen were found in sediment mud, and comprised 48.2%-60.8% of the total input, the lowest percentage was found in shrimp-fish-tagelus polyculture systems, and the highest percentage in shrimp-scallop systems. During the experiment, nitrogen lost through denitrification and ammonia volatilization comprised 1.9%-6.2%, averaged 2.8%, of the total input, and the loss through seepage comprised 5.9%-8.9% of the total. The estimated nitrogen attached to the enclosure wall comprised 3.7%-13.3% of the total, and was highest in shrimp monoculture systems. Compared with the classic shrimp farming industry, the closed shrimp polyculture systems may improve the nitrogen utilization efficiency, and hence reduce the environmental impacts on coastal waters. The nitrogen discharging rates for all the studied polyculture systems ranged