| Abstract: | Culture of orconectid crayfishes in the midwestern USA offers the potential of contributing to a year-round supply of fresh product as summer/fall production would augment winterhpring production in the southern USA. However, relatively little basic biological information exists for this potential new aquaculture crop. In this study, the authors reared juvenile (third instar) Orconectes virilis and Orconectes immunis at either 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 C and measured weight gain and survival over a 21 day period. Orconcctes immunis juveniles were larger than O. virilis at the third instar and gained weight more rapidly in this experimental system. Gains in weight and length for both species increased as temperature increased from 10 to 25 C. Both values were lower in crayfish reared at 30 C, though number of molts was the same in crayfish reared at 25 or 30 C. Thus, there appears to be a bioenergetic cost of rearing orconectid crayfishes in temperatures above 25 C. Further, incremental growth with successive molts was influenced by water temperature. |
