A NOTE ON LARVAL REARING OF THE EDIBLE CRAB, PORTUNUS PELAGICUS LINNAEUS, AT ENNORE HATCHERY, MADRAS

The results of an experiment on hatchery rearing of the blue svtimniing crab, Portunus pelagicus, from berry to second instar stage, conducted at the Ennore hatchery of the CIFR Institute, are reported. Increasing demand for crabs in the domestic and foreign markets make them a much sought-after item among fishery products. Even if the level of exploitation was stepped up, the resultant landings might not fully satisfy the demands. Hence, the need for developing culture methods is obvious, for which tu! " necssary seed material has to be raised in hatcheries, as the seed available in nature may not be sufiicient. Except for the descriptions of the larvae of Portunus pelagicus (Prasad and Tampi 1952) obtained from plankton collection and from laboratory rear-ing (Naidu 1953), no concerted effort on rearing crabs has so far been reported from our country. Hence attempts at breeding and larval rearing of crabs were made at the newly established hatchery of the Central Inland Fisheries Research