Manual lice counting and mechanical delousing increase the risk of severe winter wounds. With digital tools in the pen, lice counts can be carried out daily without harmful handling, and the insights gained can help prevent unnecessary delousing treatments.

– Manual lice counting and mechanical delousing put significant strain on the fish. We know that manual counting leads to higher mortality rates, and we also know that mechanical delousing damages the fish’s protective mucus layer and can result in scale loss. In the worst case, fish may even get open wounds. All of this increases the likelihood of salmon developing winter wounds, says Reinhard Fellner, Director of Insight & Customer Success at Aquabyte.

Fish are more vulnerable in winter

Winter wounds, or winter ulcers, are a bacterial disease that spreads more rapidly when water temperatures drop in the winter. During this period, fish are particularly vulnerable to all forms of manual handling and the injuries they can cause.

– The fish’s skin is composed of multiple layers, each with important properties that protect the fish. When these layers are weakened or removed, either through manual lice counting or mechanical delousing, the risk of developing winter wounds that do not heal increases. This significantly impacts fish health and welfare during the winter, continues Reinhard Fellner.

Minimizes physical handling

When the goal is to minimize harmful physical handling of fish, digital tools provide the solution.

– With the Aquabyte system, farmers get precise and continuous information on lice levels, weight, and health without taking fish out of the pen. This reduces the need for heavy physical labor in the winter cold and minimizes stress, strain, and injuries to the fish, says Jon Bjarte Bruland, Customer Success Associate at Aquabyte.

Digital tools can reduce the number of lice treatments

In addition to providing daily lice counts without the need for harmful fish handling, the Aquabyte system offers insights into lice trends that can help reduce the number of lice treatments during the production cycle.

– Many of our users report that the Aquabyte system provides them with data and insights that allow them to avoid unnecessary mechanical delousing during production. Daily updated lice counts and two-week predictions for lice development make it easier to plan an optimal treatment strategy based on fish health. This is crucial for fish welfare, concludes Jon Bjarte Bruland.