Food handling efficiency and particle size selectivity by the southern brown shrimp penaeus subtilis fed a dry pelleted feed.

Abstract

This study investigated the feed handling efficiency and size selectivity of four size groups ofPenaeus subtilis fed three commercial feed particle sizes. Shrimp feeding behaviour was recordedwith a video-camera, installed below a glass aquarium, where one shrimp at a time was intro-duced and allowed to feed. A total of 163 specimens of P. subtilis were examined. Results indi-cated that over 59% of all food particles placed in the mouth by shrimp were completely orpartially consumed, regardless of size. Large pellets however were less preferred than small ones.Manipulation capacity and capture success were also greater when shrimp were fed small parti-cles. Shrimp size had no significant effect on manipulation efficiency, indicating that within thefeed size range examined, food handling by juvenile shrimp was as efficient as adults. Theseresults suggest that in aquaculture systems, the use of crumbles and broken pellets may be prefer-able to large pellets.