Abstract
ABSTRACTA pilot study was conducted to evaluate air dried rice hay as a detrital feeding substrate for culture ofMacrobrachium rosenbergii.Six 0.13 ha earthen ponds were stocked with post‐larval prawns at a rate of 30,000/ha on 25 May 1982. Two ponds received rice hay biweekly at 9.8 g/m2/week; two ponds received a pelleted ration 5 days/week at 6.2 g/m2/week, and two ponds received both rice hay at 9.8 g/m2/week and the pelleted ration at 3.1 g/m2/week. “Boom and bust” phytoplankton cycles prevailed in ponds receiving rice hay, and sub‐lethal dissolved oxygen levels resulted in reduced prawn survival in ponds. One hay‐only pond had complete prawn mortality due to a sudden die‐off of an algal bloom. Prawns were harvested 12 October after a 133‐day grow‐out period. Prawn yield from a single hay‐only pond was 439 kg/ha; survival was 97.5% and individuals averaged 15 g. Prawn yield in the pellet‐only treatment averaged 600 kg/ha; survival was 90% and individuals averaged 22 g. Prawn yield in ponds receiving both hay and pellets averaged 427 kg/ha; survival was 48%, and individual prawns averaged 29 g. Rice hay or similar agricultural by‐products may have promise as detrital forage to supplement pelletized rations in prawn culture ponds, but further research is required to quantify optimum loading rates, nutritional contribution, and effects on water quality.
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