Breeding Behavior and Effect of Salinity and Osmolarity on Incubation and Hatching of Macrobrachium malcolmsonii (H. Milne Edwards) Under Laboratory Conditions

摘要

The second largest palaemonid prawn, Macrobrachium malcolmsonii has great potential for aquaculture. In the present study the breeding behavior and hatching mechanism was studied. The berried females were kept in different salinities until the larvae hatched out. The developed eggs were kept in bowls containing respective salinity. The incubation period was 14 days in freshwater but it decreased to 11 days with the addition of brakishwater of 7 ppt salinity. Hatching percentage increases when the berried females were reared in 7 ppt salinity than freshwater. The eggs of M. malcolmsonii hatched in tap water, pond water and distilled water (control) but not in the different concentrations of sucrose solutions (0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04 and 0.1 M).