Wrasse and Lumpsucker Cleaner Fish Welfare in Salmon Farming

Wrasse and lumpsucker fish are used as biological control agents for sea lice on Atlantic salmon farms. These small fish have their own welfare needs that are frequently unmet in commercial salmon farming operations.

Key Facts

Ballan wrasse can live for over 20 years in the wild and are highly territorial
They are often caught from the wild rather than bred in captivity
Lumpsuckers are pelagic species that struggle to cope with the high current flows in salmon cages
Mortality rates for cleaner fish in salmon pens are extremely high, often 50-100% per season

Welfare Considerations

Wild-caught wrasse experience acute capture stress and are displaced from their home territories and social structures. Stocking in salmon cages at densities far higher than natural exposes them to chronic social stress. Lumpsuckers suffer particularly because their physiology is poorly adapted to salmon cage conditions including high currents and temperature. High mortality rates mean large numbers of these sentient fish suffer and die for modest lice control benefit. The welfare needs of cleaner fish are rarely considered in the economic and environmental calculations of salmon farm management.

What You Can Do

Choose salmon from farms with published cleaner fish welfare protocols and low cleaner fish mortality rates
Advocate for welfare standards for cleaner fish equivalent to those for farmed salmon
Support research into aquaculture-bred rather than wild-caught wrasse for cleaner fish use
Encourage certification bodies to include cleaner fish welfare in salmon farm assessment criteria