The program titled “Program B. Refinement of Mud Crab Nursery Technology” is composed of the following projects:
- Project 1. Refinement of efficient diets for nursery culture
- Project 2. Application of strategies for reduction of cannibalism in the mud crab nursery
- Project 3. Development of protocols for the production of hatchery-reared mud crab Scylla serrata juveniles for soft shell crab farming
This program aimed to develop improved and more economically viable nursery technology to be achieved through reduced cannibalism. The profitability of the technology will be demonstrated along with capability building activities. It aims to develop effective strategies to reduce cannibalism, protocols that would increase survival in the nursery stage and facilitate the adoption of the nursery technology by at least six farms.
The program was able to increase the survival rate in the nursery to 60% through the improved nursery technology. Effective crab nursery diet in combination with natural food (mussel) was also formulated. Practical methods of trimming claws were developed to reduce cannibalism. Moreover, protocols for production of hatchery-reared juveniles for soft-shell crab farming was also developed with an improved production by 50%.
