Giant freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii
Introduction: The decapod crustacean Macrobrachium rosenbergii is also named giant river prawn and also known as the Malaysian prawn. The species is found in fresh and brackish water throughout the tropical and subtropical areas of the Indo-Pacific region, from India to Southeast Asia and Northern Australia. The giant freshwater prawn has also been introduced to other parts beyond its native range for aquaculture purpose.
Description: Giant freshwater prawn (M. rosenbergii) can grow to up to 32 cm as total length for the largest males compared to 25 cm for the largest female as measured from tip of rostrum to the end of the telson.
The colors of M. rosenbergii can vary according to where the prawns are found but they are predominantly brownish in color but can vary. Smaller individuals may be greenish in color and display faint vertical stripes on the cephalothorax. The chelipeds …show more content…
This change in color occurs as the embryos utilize their food reserves. The incubation period averages 20 days at 28°C (range 18-23 days) before hatching into zoeae (the first larval stage of crustaceans), and through several larval stages before metamorphosing into postlarvae, at which stage they are 7 – 10 mm long and have all the characteristics of adults and become mainly crawling rather than free-swimming animals. This metamorphosis usually takes place about 32 to 35 days after hatching. These post larvae then migrate back into freshwater.
Culture of freshwater prawn: Giant freshwater prawns have been farmed using traditional methods in Southeast Asia for a long time. The artificial breeding which was done in the early 1960s in Malaysia has supported the farming of the species whereas industrial-scale farming were practiced in the early 1970s in Hawaii, and spread first to Taiwan and Thailand, and then to other