Floating photovoltaic arrays on ponds may alter thermal and optical conditions that are relevant to aquaculture performance. This study compared 0% and 40% surface shading in two outdoor earthen-pond trials, one with Asian sea bass (Lates calcarifer) and one with Japanese sea bass (Lateolabrax japonicus). Temperature was logged hourly and summarized as daily means; water quality was sampled biweekly; fish were measured repeatedly, with endpoint growth compared within species. The result shows that shading lowered pond temperature and the diurnal temperature range and reduced the number of days above species benchmark temperatures. Indicators associated with phytoplankton, including suspended solids and chlorophyll a, were lower under shading, whereas dissolved inorganic nutrients were higher. In the Japanese sea bass trial, dissolved oxygen was higher without shading. Final body weight did not differ between treatments within either trial, but survival was higher with 40% shading. Principal component analysis and permutational multivariate analysis of variance indicated a treatment signal in multivariate water quality. Because the trials occurred in different years with one pond per treatment, inference was restricted to contrasts within each species. Overall, moderate surface shading cooled ponds and altered water quality without reducing growth.