Bacterial and fungal problems that can kill millions of catfish eggs a year can be kept under control with simple chemical baths, a practice that saves the industry thousands of dollars a year. The state has numerous hatcheries of various sizes producing a total of about 2 billion catfish young, or fry, each year. While some hatcheries produce as many as 100 million fry a year, most yield 30 million to 50 million annually. Hatcheries can easily lose a few million fry annually to bacteria and fungus.
Bacterial problems peak when hatcheries operate at near maximum capacity.
Crowded hatch baskets prevented water from circulating as it should through the egg masses, keeping them healthy. Bacteria can grow on the shell of the catfish egg and disintegrate the eggshell so the embryo has no protection. Typically these embryos that are not fully developed fall through the hatching baskets and die. Steeby encourages producers to inspect egg masses by look and feel twice daily for bacterial problems and once a day for fungal problems. A healthy egg mass has a rubbery, latex feel like a wet rubber glove.