Appropriate husbandry methods during larval rearing and on-growing are of particular importance for the aquaculture industry. At the Aquaculture Technology Laboratory we study the feeding and environmental specific requirements of Mediterranean fish species. Since 2000 we have been interested in the specific diversification of the production. In particular, for the greater amberjack (Seriola dumerili) and the meagre (Argyrosomus regius) successful methods for larval rearing and grow out are developed.

The need for better farm management in the framework of precision farming, applying principles of circular economy, represent an important research priority. New tools towards human-free operational schemes have been developed for cage farming such as (a) an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) for frequent monitoring of cages, (b) systems for biomass estimation using stereoscopic imaging and (c) image systems for monitoring fish behaviour aiming towards improvements in feeding and husbandry practices.

One of the research interests of the group is to understand climate change implications for the Mediterranean aquaculture and the definition of species-specific thermal preferences.