Effects of crushed conspecifics on growth and survival of Penaeus monodon Fabricius post larvae

In the present study, the hypothesis tested was that Penaeus monodon post‐larvae (PL) experience lower growth when exposed to crushed conspecifics, which was achieved by exposing individual P. monodon PL with abundant food for 4 weeks to a gradient from 0 to 100 crushed conspecific PL L^?1. Both dry weight (48.5±7.2 mg) and body size (28.0±1.3 mm) of animals exposed to 1 macerated PL L^?1 were significantly (P≤0.011) higher than those of animals in treatments with 0, 5 and 10 crushed PL L^?1 (average over treatments: 25.6±3.2 mg; 23.4±0.5 mm). All animals died within 1 week when exposed to 70 and 100 crushed PL L^?1, and within 3–4 weeks when exposed to 50 and 30 crushed PL L^?1. Exposure time affected mortality and it appeared that LC₅₀ values decreased from 60 to 13 crushed PL L^?1 from 1 to 4 weeks' exposure. Survival of P. monodon PL was negatively correlated to pH, biological oxygen demand, ammonia and nitrate. In conclusion, low dose of crushed conspecifics has a stimulatory effect on P. monodon PL, as larvae were heavier and larger, while high doses cause high mortality.     

Effects of Decomposing Rhizophora apiculata Leaves on Larvae of the Shrimp Penaeus monodon

We studied the effects of different concentrations of decomposing Rhizophora apiculata leaves and their leachates on larvae of the shrimp Penaeus monodon under laboratory conditions. Shrimp mortality was highly dependent on the concentration of oxygen in the water, which in turn was strongly correlated to the amount of decomposing leaves in the same water. Shrimps died after 5 min when placed in water containing the highest concentration of mangrove leachates (15 g l⁻¹) tested in our experiments. Shrimp survival and biomass decreased significantly when the shrimp were cultured at the relatively higher concentrations of leaves and leachates (10 and 15 g l⁻¹); in contrast, moderate amounts of leaves or their leachates (2.5–5 g l⁻¹) had positive effects on shrimps. The survival and biomass of shrimps cultured with plastic leaves was lower than those of shrimps cultured with mangrove leaves, indicating that food derived from mangrove leaves contributed to a higher shrimp survival and biomass. These results have important implications for the culture of shrimps in extensive mangrove-shrimp systems. While litter may promote shrimp production, high leaf concentrations may have negative effects due to the drop in the oxygen concentration. Water circulation may help to prevent low oxygen conditions and reduce local accumulations of mangrove leaves.