Larval survival of the freshwater shrimp Macrobrachium acanthurus (Wiegmann, 1836) and Macrobrachium olfersii (Wiegmann, 1836) (Caridea: Palaemonidae) in different salinities
Larviculture. Native Species. Latin America. Sustainable Aquaculture.
Macrobrachium acanthurus and Macrobrachium olfersii play a crucial ecological role and have been widely studied. These are freshwater species, but their larval development occurs in brackish water. The present study used M. acanthurus and M. olfersii as models to investigate the effects of different salinities on larval survival, aiming to develop techniques that aid in the production and conservation of native shrimp species. The first experiment evaluated the larval survival of M. olfersii after hatching during the acclimation phase. After the 4-hour acclimation period, the survival of M. olfersii larvae was above 86% and showed no significant difference between treatments (0, 6, 11, 14, 20, and 24). In a period of 7 and 8 days, survival did not show a significant difference between treatments for M. acanthurus and M. olfersii, respectively. However, interactions with the covariate time seem to be crucial for understanding the dynamics of salinity on the larvae in the first days of life. Due to the high larval mortality, it was not possible to monitor the complete larval development. Handling may have influenced larval survival. New experiments need to be conducted focusing on the quality of handling and cultivation water.