Figure 1: Salmon in tank 3 of group 3.

Hi, my name is Sebastian Corneliussen, and as part of my final semester of my bachelor’s degree in biology, I’m taking BIO299. Throughout my degree, my interest in aquaculture has grown exponentially. While I have taken courses to expand my knowledge in this field, I wanted more hands-on experience in conducting research. That’s why this course seemed like the perfect fit for me. Fortunately, I found a project that truly intrigues me—an experimental trial investigating the effects of continuous swimming versus interval swimming in Atlantic almon, along with the interaction between feeding time for the interval swimming exercise.

In the aquaculture industry, poor growth performance, illness, and mortality pose significant challenges. Swimming exercise has been documented to improve the well-being and growth of salmonids. Therefore, understanding the effects of swimming is highly valuable to the industry.

The experimental trial involved three groups of Atlantic salmon, each with its own unique swimming regime. Group A swam continuously, while Group B and Group C swam in intervals, with Group B being fed after exercise and Group C being fed before exercise. My contribution to the trial included weekly lab work and participating in samplings. As part of the weekly lab work, I weighed the feed waste from the tanks to calculate the feed intake of the different groups and I prepared feed for the fish. I also assisted in preparing for samplings and during them, I weighed organs that would later be used for organ indexes. The feed intake and organ indexes of the three groups were then used in a comparative analysis.

Figure 2: Weight and dehydrator which were used to measure the feed waste from the fish tanks.

While the tasks may seem mundane, I discovered a sense of achievement in participating in work that I believe is important. Surprisingly, I found the tasks to be relaxing at times, providing an escape from the ordinary student schedule of lectures, reading, and writing assignments.

This course has provided me with valuable skills and insights into academic work, which I’m confident will prove helpful in any future endeavours. Most importantly, it has strengthened my passion for aquaculture, and I am more determined that this is the field I want to pursue a career in.