GIVEN INDICATIONS THAT THE U.S. WILL HAVE TO BECOME MORE AND MORE DEPENDENT ON AQUACULTURE AS A SOURCE OF FISH, THE AQUATIC FOOD ANIMAL TASK FORCE ESTABLISHED COMMITTEES TO ASSESS RESEARCH PRIORITIES RELATING TO DEVELOPMENT OF AQUACULTURE FOR FRESHWATER FOODFISH AND CRAWFISH IN THE SOUTHERN REGION OF THE U.S. THIS PRELIMINARY REPORT OF THE TASK FORCE PRESENTS THE STUDY RESULTS IN TERMS OF SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM PRIORITIES FOR RESEARCH EFFORTS IN THE FOLLOWING SUBJECTS: FISH DISEASES AND PARASITES, POLLUTANTS AND TOXINS, PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT, PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND QUALITY MAINTENANCE, AND MARKETING RESEARCH AND ECONOMICS. SPECIFIC EFFORTS WITHIN EACH OF THE ABOVE HEADINGS ARE PRIORITY RANKED FOR BOTH FOODFISH AND CRAWFISH. THE RATIONALE FOR THIS ASSESSMENT OF NEEDED RESEARCH IS SHOWN BY THESE EXCERPTS FROM THE GENERAL INTRODUCTION: PRESENT WORLD PRODUCTION OF AQUATIC FOOD ORGANISMS, PLANTS, AND ANIMALS IS ESTIMATED TO EXCEED FIVE MILLION METRIC TONS, OR ABOUT TWICE THE U.S. LANDINGS OF FISHERIES PRODUCTS. PRESENT WORLD PRODUCTION OF FISH THROUGH AQUACULTURE IS DOUBLE THAT OF FIVE YEARS AGO, AND IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE BY 500 PERCENT BY 1985. THE CLIMATE AND TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SOUTHERN REGION OF THE U.S. IS WELL SUITED TO AQUACULTURE PRODUCTION. WITH A GREATER RESEARCH BASE TO REDUCE UNCERTAINTY AND INCREASE EFFICIENCY, FRESHWATER AQUACULTURE PRODUCTION THERE WILL BECOME A MAJOR SUPPLIER OF FISH. A BILLION POUNDS OF FISH FOOD PRODUCTS CAN BE EASILY SUPPORTED. THIS COULD BE ACHIEVED BY BETTER UTILIZATION OF AVAILABLE WATER IN LAND AND WATER AREAS THAT ARE PRESENTLY PRODUCTIVE ONLY AS A HABITAT FOR WILDLIFE. THIS POTENTIAL FOR ANIMAL PROTEIN PRODUCTION, FOR EMPLOYMENT OF PEOPLE, AND FOR BETTER LAND AND RESOURCE UTILIZATION JUSTIFIES EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY AND ASSIGN PRIORITIES TO NEEDED RESEARCH.