A milestone in aquaculture has been reached

In Fiji at the seawater laboratory of the Division of Marine Studies at the University of the South Pacific, larvae of the Monkey river prawn (Macrobrachium lar) have been for the first time ever in captivity successfully reared through the planktonic larval phase of their life-cycle to metamorphosis into the post-larval stage, a development that has taken humanity a step closer to realising the species' potential for farming.

Monkey River prawn, Macrobrachium lar

It has long been hoped that this species could be farmed, locally its is known as uradine and is indigenous to Fiji and a number of small pacific islands including the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Macrobrachium lar has been a focus of research to assess its potential for aquaculture for a number of decades, with the hope that it will be farmed much like its cousin the Malaysian Giant Freshwater Prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii whose annual production value in Asia alone is estimated at around one billion US dollars. Read more ...

This blog is written by Martin Little, The Aquaculturists, published and supported by the International Aquafeed Magazine from Perendale Publishers. To get your copy of 'PPLAPP' click here.