Abalone are prized marine gastropods increasingly farmed in coastal systems. Their welfare needs — including appropriate substrate, water quality, and handling minimization — are just beginning to be systematically studied.
Abalone aquaculture welfare sits at the frontier of invertebrate welfare science. Like other molluscs, abalone have simple nervous systems, and the scientific community remains divided on their capacity for subjective suffering. However, behavioral evidence — withdrawal responses to noxious stimuli, avoidance behavior, and physiological stress indicators — suggests that precautionary welfare consideration is appropriate. In farming systems, abalone are frequently kept at high densities in flat-rack systems that restrict natural grazing behavior. Handling stress during grading and cleaning causes measurable physiological responses. Feed quality dramatically affects health outcomes — macroalgae availability and nutritional completeness are welfare-critical. Temperature management is essential: abalone in systems that experience warming events die rapidly, but even sublethal warming causes chronic stress and reduced immune function. Improving handling protocols, feed quality, and environmental management represents low-cost, high-impact welfare improvement.