Four practical diets containing 2% of crude protein (CP)
(180 and 280 g kg)1
), with or without menhaden fish meal
(FM), were fed to Australian red claw Cherax quadricarinatus
during a 97-day feeding trial. Growth, survival,
body composition and processing traits of pond-cultured
red claw were determined. Juvenile red claw (mean individual
weight of 5.75 ± 3.3 g) were randomly stocked into
twelve 0.04-ha ponds at a rate of 1000 per pond
(25 000 ha)1
), and each diet was fed to three ponds. At
harvest, the final mean weight of red claw fed Diet 4
(0 g kg)1 FM and 280 g kg)1 CP) and Diet 3 (113 g kg)1
FM and 280 g kg)1 CP) was significantly (P < 0.05) higher
(62.4 and 58.5 g, respectively) than red claw fed Diet 1
(73 g kg)1 FM and 180 g kg)1 CP; 51.7 g) and Diet 2
(0 g kg)1 FM and 180 g kg)1 CP; 53.0 g). Red claw fed
diets containing 280 g kg)1 CP, with or without FM, had
significantly higher percent weight gain (894 and 959%,
respectively) compared to red claw fed 180 g kg)1 CP, with
or without FM (778 and 799%, respectively). Feed conversion
ratio, percent survival, and total yield among
treatments, which averaged 3.55, 65.2%, and 724 kg ha)1
overall, were not significantly different. Results from this
study indicate that pond-cultured red claw stocked at
25 000 ha)1 can be fed a practical diet containing
280 g kg)1 CP with 0 g kg)1 FM if a combination of
plant-protein ingredients (soybean meal, distillers dried
grains with solubles, and milo) is added; however, if the
percentage of dietary protein level is 180 g kg)1
, growth is
reduced even if FM is added at 73 g kg)1 of the diet. Use
of diets containing plant-protein sources may help reduce
diet costs to producers and thereby, increase profits.