Evaluation of common natural diets used in female orange mud crab, Scylla olivacea (Herbst, 1796) reared in captivity.

This study focused on the effect of common natural diets, scadfish and squid on the growth performance, morphology, histology and fatty acids of ovary and hepatopancreas of female orange mud crabs, Scylla olivacea. Twenty individuals of newly mature crabs (body weight = 69.21 ± 2.19 g, carapace width = 7.18 ± 0.07 cm) with 10 individuals per treatment were cultured for 60 days with ambient water parameters. Twenty individuals of control crabs were also collected from the wild. The highest body weight gain (BWG), carapace width gain (CWG), gonadosomatic index (GSI) as well as oocyte and tubule diameter were recorded during the captivity, with the mud crabs fed with scadfish leading (BWG = 36.58%, CWG = 14.90%, GSI = 0.47%, oocyte diameter = 47.19 μm, tubule diameter = 167.82 μm). Likewise, high concentrations of ∑PUFA, ∑EPA, ∑DHA and ∑n3 were reported in scadfish‐fed crabs compared to both squid‐fed and wild‐caught crabs (p < 0.05). In contrast, lower fatty acids were noted in the hepatopancreas of crabs from all treatments, suggesting an occurrence of nutrient transfer from the hepatopancreas to the ovaries. Overall results concluded that scadfish is preferred as the main diet for crabs in captivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]