A taste of the ocean in Putnam County

Friday, April 25, 2008
A lot of maintenance is required to get the farm ready for the shrimp.

A taste of the ocean is available in Putnam County.

This is the second year that Eddy-Lynn Shrimp Farm owned by Keith and Katrina Henderson of Coatesville is building ponds for freshwater shrimp or "prawn". Last year they built and maintained only one pond and harvested the shrimp on Labor Day.

Freshwater shrimp differ from marine shrimp in that they have more of a lobster texture.

Most people who are allergic to marine shrimp can safely eat freshwater shrimp.

At Eddy-Lynn shrimp farm, they have built two additional ponds this year for a total of three.

"We are expecting 30,000 larvae this June," Katrina said.

Of the 30,000 larvae expected, they hope for around 22,000 to survive. Freshwater shrimp have around a 40 percent mortality due to cannibalistic tendencies.

Last year, Eddy-Lynn only had 10,000 delivered to their one pond.

Due to the cooler climate of central Indiana, the growing season for shrimp is only three months. It doesn't get warm enough for the shrimp to reproduce, so the larvae must be delivered to the ponds.

"Around the first of June we will get a shipment of larvae in a tanker truck from Kentucky," Katrina said. "The larvae must then be acclimated to our water which takes a couple hours. Once they know the larvae will survive in our water they dump it into our ponds."

Wooden frames are built in the water where freshwater shrimp are grown at Eddy-Lynn Shrimp Farm, located near Coatesville.

Owning and operating a shrimp farm is no easy task though.

"I have to check the ph, oxygen and temperature levels daily," Katrina admitted.

One of the downsides to operating a shrimp farm is the uncertainty of the harvest number.

On top of having to worry about the water levels and cannibalism, freshwater shrimp are also susceptible to a variety of viral or bacterial diseases including White Tail disease, also known as White Muscle Disease.

This disease is rare but has been reported in hatcheries in India and recently in Australia where the mortality rate of those infected is 100-percent.

According to www.thefishsite.com, "A recent paper by Dr A.S. Sahul Hameed from the Aquaculture Division, Department of Zoology, at C. Abdul Hakeem College, Tamil Nadu, says that as aquaculture expands and intensifies, more and more new diseases will emerge."

Presently, The Henderson's have not reported any instances or problems with diseases. The biggest issue for them is cannibalism.

Katrina said that The Eddy-Lynn Shrimp Farm is the farthest north shrimp farm in the state.

There is also one at roughly the same latitude in Marysville, Ohio that has great success at the more northern climes.

The date of harvest is set for Labor Day weekend. They sell the shrimp pond-side for $9 per pound that whole weekend.

Last year they sold their whole stock in a one day jamboree that people of all ages enjoyed.

The Eddy-Lynn Shrimp Farm is located at 446 S CR 900 East in Coatesville. They can be contacted at 765-386-7496.

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