Nutrient composition of fairy shrimp Streptocephalus sirindhornae nauplii as live food and growth performance of giant freshwater prawn postlarvae

Nutritional efficacy of fairy shrimp (Streptocephalus sirindhornae) nauplii, as a live food, was studied for growth performance and survival rate of giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) postlarvae. A feeding experiment was designed with four different feeds: dry commercial feed, fairy shrimp nauplii, Artemia sp. nauplii and adult Moina macrocopa. Results from the nutritional composition revealed that fairy shrimp nauplii had protein and lipid contents of 54.58 ± 2.8 g kg^?1 and 255 ± 2.8 g kg^?1, respectively. The highest value for an individual amino acid in fairy shrimp was lysine (140.7 ± 1.6 g kg^?1). The essential amino acids content in the whole body of the larval prawns was in the range of 66.7–67.5 g kg^?1. Fairy shrimp nauplii had the highest essential amino acid ratio (A/E) of lysine, similarly, in musculature of prawn larvae. Weight gain and specific growth rate of the postlarvae fed with fairy shrimp nauplii were significantly higher than those fed with Artemia nauplii, adult Moina and dry commercial feed. The presented results suggest that S. sirindhornae nauplii can be used as a nutritionally adequate food for freshwater prawn M. rosenbergii postlarvae.