Optimal salinities for the culture of Penaeus indicus from the Red Sea

Abstract EN

Shrimp culture in Saudi Arabia is at an early stag e with few commercial farms .

Apart from technology , most problems center on the high coastal salinities of the Red Sea (41-43%0).

Hence it is important to examine optimum salinity ranges for species considered for culture, with local species given highest priority as they may be adapted to salinity stress.

Present work examines the heamolymph osmolarity of Penaeus indicus from the Red Sea and shows that this species is very well adapted, regulating over a wide range of 10-55%0.

Other experiments with P.

indicus larvae reveal that optimal culture salinity is 30%0, and for nursery stage shrimp (PL2·25) 20-30%0.

Postlarvae appear to have gained the best resistance to the stress of transfer to the pond salinity of 43%0 of the PL25 stage.

A comparison of the salinity responses of Red Sea P.

indicus with population from other regions suggests that local populations are pre-adapted to the hypersaline environment.