1.4 Species composition of the European aquaculture industry

The range of species farmed at present in Europe can be conveniently grouped into three categories reflecting their culture status, namely i) established species, ii) emerging species and iii) under active research and evaluation. The main finfish and shellfish species are listed below under these three headings

i) Established species

Trout (freshwater & marine) Salmo trutta
Atlantic salmon Salmo salar
Carp Cyprinus carpio
Eel Anguilla anguilla
Sea bass Dicentrarchus spp.
Sea bream Sparus auratus
European Oyster Ostrea edulis
Pacific Oytser Crassostrea gigas
Mussels Mytilus edulis & M. galloprovinialis
Clams Tapes decussatus and T. philippinarium

ii) emerging species

Turbot Scophthalmus maximus
Halibut Hippoglossus hippoglossus
Cod Gadus morhua
Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus
Sturgeon Various Acipenserid spp.
Tench Tinca tinca
Roach Rutilus rutilus
Mullets Mugilidae
Catfish Ictalurus spp, Clarias spp
Scallop Pecten maximus
Abalone Haliotis tuberculata, H. discus hannai

iii) under active research and evaluation

Wolf-fish Anarchichus lupus & A. minor
Sole Solea solea
Pagrids Pagrus major; P. pagrus
Sheepshead bream Puntazzo puntazzo
Spanish bream Pagellus acarne

A number of trends can be discerned in these lists. The majority of species in all three groupings are finfish with only a small number of shellfish species being represented, particularly in the emerging and evaluation categories. This is often taken to confirm the ongoing interest of the industry in higher valued marine fish species. It is also evident that most of the species in the established and emerging categories are from central and northern Europe reflecting the research and development efforts of the Nordic countries in the past. Conversely, the group under active evaluation includes many species form Southern Europe, showing more recent research efforts supported by the European Union and Mediterranean countries.