Farmers’ Local Knowledge in Extensive Shrimp Farming Systems in Coastal Bangladesh

The study was conducted to analyze farmers’ local knowledge in extensive shrimp farming in the coastal area of Bangladesh. The relevant data were collected through farmers’ interview in the study area. Bangladesh shrimp farming are involved with traditional method and generally do not practice well-defined pond preparation, liming, fertilization, predator control or artificial feeding, where production is low, water exchange is irregular, and water management is very poor. In south-western region of the country traditionally two types of shrimp farming systems are practicing in Khulna region; i) rice-shrimp: shrimp with rice or alternate shrimp rice culture and ii) only-shrimp: year round shrimp culture systems. Farmers are doing their best to get optimum output with minimum investment and low risk. Pond preparation, feeding and fertilizing and fry stocking are the main components of shrimp farming. Farmers’ knowledge in these three components was found good in both farming systems. Around 80% of farmers have received training on different pond activities like pond preparation, fry stocking and water quality management. Thus the research concludes that shrimp farmers in the area are doing their farming by using their local knowledge what they achieved during long history of the traditional culture in the south-west coastal Bangladesh.