Abstract
Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) systems have been designed to optimize nutrient and energy use, to decrease waste, and to diversify fish-farm production. Recently, the development of detritivorous aquaculture has been encouraged, as detrivores can consume organic particulate matter, reducing benthic eutrophication and the environmental footprint of aquaculture. To this end, the polychaete Hediste diversicolor is a promising species due to its broad feeding behaviour and its resistance in a wide range of environments. In this study, an existing Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) model of H. diversicolor was used to predict the ragworm's metabolic processes in various environmental conditions and to estimate its bioremediation capacity in an aquaculture context. First, the scaled functional response (f) was calibrated in a 98-day growth experiment with two types of food (Fish faeces and Fish feed). Then, we further validated the model using data on the ammonia excretion and oxygen consumption of individuals fed with fish faeces at four different temperatures using the previously calibrated f. Overall, we found that the DEB model was able to correctly predict the experimental data (0.51 \textless MRE \textless0.80). Lastly, different environmental scenarios of seawater temperatures and assimilation rates were compared. The bioremediation potential of H. diversicolor was estimated based on cumulated assimilation rates, which could represent 75-289 kg of fish waste year(-1) for a 100 m(2) ragworm farm (3700 ind. m(-2)). These findings suggest that the DEB model is a promising tool for further IMTA development and management.