Testing of experimental feed for young Australian red-clawed crayfish that meets its nutritional needs

Abstract

One of the relatively promising types of world aquaculture is the Australian redclawed crayfish, which is one of the relatively promising objects in warm-water aquaculture. Compared to other farmed crustaceans (shrimps, crabs), Australian crayfish is characterized by a high growth rate and unpretentiousness to the conditions of aging. In the process of cultivation of red-clawed crayfish, industrial granulated feeds developed for other types of hydrobionts (shrimps, fish) are currently used. In the presence of biotechnological standards for growing juveniles and commercial products of red-clawed crayfish, the question remains open about the lack of production of balanced specialized feeds for them. The purpose of this work was to test an experimental feed developed according to its own recipe for young Australian red-clawed crayfish. The main stages of the technology of preparation of the above feed are described. The experimental feed was compared with production dry feed according to the main parameters (qualitative composition, nutritional value, consumer characteristics). Taking into account the nutritional needs of crayfish in the main nutrients (protein, fat, fiber), three types of food were selected: for loricarium catfish, for juvenile sturgeon and experimental. In accordance with them, three variants of the experiment were laid down, where the conditions of maintenance (planting density, temperature and light modes, feeding frequency) were identical, except for differences in the type of feed. During the experiment, the main differences in the size and weight parameters of groups of juvenile Australian crayfish cultured using these feeds were revealed. The necessary conditions for keeping crustaceans in the laboratory and the scheme of their control are described.