They turned the northern part of the Yangtze River into the southern part. During the summer practice, they released a cage of South American white shrimp! First National Ecological Day, Salt alkali Pond Base | Ecology | White Shrimp

This year's August 15th is the first National Ecological Day established by the country. On this ecological day, the sun is shining brightly in the Ordos region of Inner Mongolia. In Donghaixin Village, Dalat Banner, a group of teachers and students from the land of fish and rice are wearing water pants to help shrimp farmers "raise shrimp from the aquaculture pond" in a saline alkali land comprehensive breeding base. From South American white shrimp to various fish and crabs, developing fishing and planting rice on saline alkali land was once a unimaginable "northern Jiangnan" landscape for locals, but now it has all been realized.

Members of the practice team check the feeding situation of shrimp on the feeding plate

The reporter from Jiefang Daily's Shangguan News learned that summer vacation is the season for local South American white shrimp farming. The social practice team of the School of Marine Ecology and Environment at Shanghai Ocean University, led by a guard teacher, came to this breeding base again to participate in practical production. Guan Weibing said, "The establishment of National Ecological Day has profound significance. I have been rooted in the front line of rural agricultural production all year round and see more and more places increasing income and wealth by improving the ecological environment."

Water management is the first step in fish farming, and even severe salinization can improve farmland

The area of saline alkali cultivated land in Dalat Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, exceeds 1/4 of the total cultivated land area of the entire banner, seriously restricting the development of local agriculture and fisheries. Teacher Guan brought the construction technology of land-based ecological fishing grounds, but the difficulty of truly turning saline alkali land into "green mountains and clear waters" and then into "golden mountains and silver mountains" that enable the people to live a good life can be imagined.

Fish farming starts with water management. Water quality improvement is the core of the success or failure of aquaculture in saline alkali land, and it is also the only way to achieve high yield. Teacher Guan and his students went door-to-door to visit farmers, understand the local soil and water quality situation, and constantly tried and improved techniques. Years of deep cultivation and meticulous work, the team has its own set——

Guard

They first introduced the Yellow River water into aquaculture ponds, effectively diluting the saline alkali components in the ponds; At the same time, before breeding, cow manure is used to cover the bottom of the pond, and physical barriers are used to reduce the salt alkali exchange between soil and water; In addition, by artificially supplementing algal and bacterial species, cultivating excellent algal and bacterial forms, and utilizing algal growth to consume carbon dioxide, thereby consuming carbonate alkali substances. After this improvement, the water quality is very suitable for the growth of shrimp.

Zhang Fukuan, the person in charge of the practical breeding base, said happily, "Before you came, the shrimp fry we placed in the pond had poor vitality and even exhibited symptoms of 'stealing to death'. Now we have realized that it is because so much work has not been done properly, and it is different to have knowledgeable technicians to guide us."

At present, the guard team has transformed rice paddies through engineering design, breeding aquatic species such as grass carp, Yellow River carp, silver carp, river crabs, and South American white shrimp, and constructing a comprehensive rice and fish farming system to achieve multiple uses of water and multiple harvests in one field. Looking at the rice grown on the heavily saline alkali land in Donghai Xin Village, which has been improved by the team in recent years, Teacher Guan was excited and confident: "The more saline alkali the land is, the more we need to do it. We need to turn all of these 1000 acres of saline alkali land into good farmland!"

Yu Xinrui

There are no small matters in production, and every day we patrol the pond without neglecting the details

As a 2022 student of the School of Marine Ecology and Environment at Shanghai Ocean University, Yu Xinrui arrived at the base in June this year. Because June is a crucial period for the desalination and roughening of shrimp fry, it can help shrimp fry overcome the adverse effects of local high cold and high salinity, and is a key factor in the success of the relay aquaculture model in saline alkali soil greenhouses and ponds. When it comes to his views on shrimp farming, Xiao Yu smiled and said, "As a breeder, I also feel a sense of achievement as I watch the experience of shrimp fry constantly upgrading."

The large temperature difference between day and night in the saline alkali land of the northwest inland region results in a significant change in water temperature, which has a negative impact on the early growth of shrimp. At the same time, saline alkali ponds are prone to seeping saline alkali components into the water, resulting in high pH and carbonate alkalinity in the water, and affecting the buffering performance of the water. Therefore, monitoring the growth, feeding condition, and water quality of shrimp is particularly important.

Yu Xinrui, who has already been sun tanned, admitted that his most important job every day is to patrol the pond at different time periods, check the feeding conditions of the shrimp on the feeding tray, whether there are any abnormalities in feces, the health status of the shrimp, and whether they have shed their shells... In addition, he also regularly inspects the pond facilities to eliminate safety hazards. Every time he meticulously inspects each pond, meticulously scrutinizing every detail. He said, "Ecological fishery production is nothing small, and every detail is worth paying attention to."

In his spare time, he often explains the working principles and usage methods of various animal health products to workers, and shares new knowledge about aquaculture. The workers sighed and didn't expect there to be so much knowledge in the small pond. The arrival of the practical team from Ocean University was very reassuring and reassuring.

"Through living and working with workers in rural areas, I truly realized that agricultural production practice is not as simple as imagined. At the same time, I also understood the importance of deepening frontline practice and the importance of combining technology with actual production." Yu Xinrui said.

Wei Guohao

In seamless integration, the first year graduate students have started classes ahead of schedule

In early July, Wei Guohao, a first-year graduate student who was admitted to Shanghai Ocean University, also arrived at the base ahead of schedule. He is a fresh graduate majoring in aquaculture at Jimei University. After communicating with his teachers, he wants to use his summer vacation time to advance his graduate studies and scientific research. He also wants to bring the advanced technology and management experience he learned during his internship at a coastal aquaculture company to the inland saline alkali land, seamlessly connecting with his passion for aquaculture.

Xiao Wei said, "There is still a big difference in the environment between inland saline alkali land and coastal areas, but similarities can be found between the two. The core concepts of breeding and management will not change." With relevant work experience, he quickly adapted to the environment, replenishing water and cultivating bacteria by the pond, and dealing with shrimp is very easy.

After walking around the fish pond, he developed a strong interest in the representative species of the Yellow River carp, the Yellow River carp. "I have raised shrimp in my undergraduate studies, but graduate students still need to research something different so that they can have new gains during their graduate studies." In this way, under the guidance of his supervisor, Wei Guohao chose his new research direction.

Afterwards, in addition to helping to take care of the shrimp pond, Wei Guohao often went to the fish pond to observe the differences in the feeding and growth status of carp under different farming modes, and took the initiative to take on the work of water quality monitoring. "Before conducting research, it is necessary to accumulate sufficient basic knowledge. There are similarities and differences between fish farming and shrimp farming. I want to take advantage of the holiday before the official start of school to study fish farming well and start my graduate career well." Wei Guohao said confidently.

In order to spend the first National Ecological Day more professionally, the Youth League Committee of Shanghai Haidian University led the organization of four student teams. Led by guiding teachers, they went to Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Guizhou, Hunan and other places to deeply understand and learn about the characteristics and achievements of local economic development, social governance, rural construction, etc., and combined with the characteristics of the school's disciplines, carried out technical support for agriculture, deeply comprehending the vivid practice of ecological civilization ideas in various regions.