Monosex culture of freshwater prawn M. rosenbergii

Monosex is a desirable practice in crustacean aquaculture. Differences between males and females of the same species, in growth rate, alimentary needs and behavioral patterns, highlight the need to establish novel technologies and management procedures specifically tailored to culturing only one sex or the other. In one of the most economically important cultured freshwater species, the prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii, sexual dimorphic patterns are very significant, by which males grow considerably larger than the females. Production of monosex culture of all-male specifically under low stocking densities, increase average weight, yield and profitability in up to 60%. Recent scientific advancements in the identification of sex differentiating factors in crustaceans led to the development of a pioneering RNAi-based technology that generates an all-male population of M. rosenbergii. Alternatively, all-female culture of M. rosenbergii was suggested to be more suitable for high stocking densities. This approach results in higher yields per area, higher survival rate and uniform product with a shorter grow out time, but with lower average weight. A novel technology for producing all-female population has been recently developed in M. rosenbergii and is now commercially available. The scientific concepts behind these two novel technologies and a comparison between the two different monosex strategies in M. rosenbergii will be further discussed in the talk.