Seawater lobster is a highly hunted fishery product and its demand continues to increase. Therefore, the sea crab business opportunity is still wide open. Many people prefer sea crab to freshwater because it is tastier and larger in size and also more expensive. For those of you who want to start farming crabs, it’s actually not too difficult to do.

These are some of the most complete methods that can be seen below.

1. Seawater Lobster Seed Supply

Unlike freshwater crab farming, before starting sea crab farming, quality seeds must be prepared first from shrimp farmers or can also be obtained directly from fishermen. The price of sea crab seeds varies greatly depending on the type and weight of the lobster, such as 1/2 ounce to 2 ounces which can be purchased at a price of 30 thousand and for seeds weighing more than 2 ounces is around 400 thousand. The larger the seed, the higher the price.

When buying seeds from fishermen, choose an area that is close to the lobster farming area. In addition to saving on shipping costs, this is also helpful in reducing the risk of seedlings dying due to too long a journey time. The seedlings should also be quarantined first so they don’t get stressed because they just traveled a long distance.

2. Choosing a type of lobster seed

In Indonesian waters, there are at least six species of spiny lobster, including Panulirus homarus, Panulirus peniculatus, Panulirus peniculatus, Panulirus longipes, Panulirus polyphagus, and Panulirus versicolor.

• Panulirus homarus: Lobster with a blue, greenish, brown or reddish back and with large and small bright yellow spots. On the body there is a pattern of transverse yellow stripes on the back of the abdominal segment and there are spots on the legs.
• Panulirus peniculatus: Lobsters are dark green or slightly blackish green and brown in color. males are darker in color than females.
• Panulirus longipes: Lobsters are brownish red or dark red in color with white spots on the legs with longitudinal brown or yellow stripes.
• Panulirus polyphagus: Brown lobster with white and dark brown pipe-shaped lines on each segment.
• Panulirus versicolor: The lobster is bright green with red stripes on its back. The head is black and there are scattered white spots on the carapace of the head.

3. Seawater lobster farm

The sowing of crabs must be done with care and one of the factors of death of the seeds of crabs is due to problems of adaptation. Adaptation is a process of environmental adjustment of organisms in the old media environment to the new media environment gradually. Temperature is also very important during the adaptation process for planting, so it should be done when the weather is cool or shady, such as in the morning, afternoon or evening. Before the seeds begin to sow, they must be adjusted to room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes before being released into the net.

4. Selection of the place of cultivation

Unlike the cultivation of freshwater crabs in an aquarium, for a pond used as a place for the cultivation of sea crabs, it must be adjusted to the needs. Do not let the lobster not be able to move freely so it should be given enough space. The captivity or pond is made floating using lobster nets of 30 to 50 fish per pond.

After the net is installed and tightened, prepare a shelter or hiding place to prevent cannibalism when the locust is molting or shedding its skin. This shelter can be made from bamboo that drowns at the bottom of the net or you can also use algae. The following are some things to keep in mind when farming crabs.

• Have a location that is easily accessible from land so that the mobilization of production facilities can be carried out more easily.
• The farming location should be protected from storms, strong winds, strong currents and waves that are too high because seawater lobster farming usually takes longer, so choose a location that is protected from the effects of extreme and seasonal weather.
• The place of cultivation must also not be contaminated by settlements, industries, ports, mining and other activities that may drain waste into the sea.
• The growing site is also protected from river mouths which can reduce salinity levels and also mud when it rains.
• The place of cultivation must be free from the phenomenon of reflux or upwelling.

5. Seawater lobster marriage

For the means of raising lobsters, you can use a mass mating system so that the female can be more dominant in choosing males so that the egg laying process can occur quickly. When the lobster has shown signs of being ready to lay eggs, such as the tail bending toward the first leg from below, spread the lobster apart in different places so the eggs don’t touch when the lobster fights with other lobsters which can cause the eggs to spread. they fall

After being incubated for 28 to 32 days, the mother lobster is ready to hatch about 300 fry. The fry must be separated from their mothers so they can find their own food and the young can rest before mating again after 2 to 3 weeks.

6. Food for Sea Lobsters

For this type of lobster feed you can give fresh whitebait, oysters, snails and other types of feed. Before administering the food, fresh fish or snails are cut into pieces that are administered twice a day, in the morning and at night. The size of the feed given is as much as 20% per head of the lobster’s weight and don’t forget to clean the pond if the feed is left so it doesn’t rot as it can poison the lobster.

7. Feed amount and frequency

The amount of feed that is given for shrimp farming depends on the size of the lobster as it happens in giant shrimp farming. If the size is less than 10 grams, up to 30% of the lobster’s body weight can be fed and given once a day, ie every evening. Meanwhile, for lobsters between 50 and 100 grams, 15% is given twice daily up to 10% of the lobster’s body weight.

8. Repair and Maintenance of Networks

The most important care of the crayfish culture media is the care of the net. Make sure that the net is always clean so that the circulation of the water remains fluid and avoid illnesses due to dirty nets. This cleaning is done once a month by lifting it to the surface and drying it for about 2-3 days and then cleaning it of algae, sediment and barnacles attached to the net. while net repair should be carried out if any part of the net is broken or the stitching is loose.

9. Monitoring and Observation

Monitoring and observation consists of two types, namely daily and periodic. Daily observations were made every day to check the health of the lobsters, the condition of the food given to the lobsters, the condition of the nets, and various other things found in the observations. All these results will be recorded in the daily form of cultivation activities.

Meanwhile, regular observations are made to be able to observe the growth and whether the life of the sea crab is good or not. In the observation of growth, lobster samples were considered for evaluation and also as a basis for feeding. Meanwhile, determining lobster survival is done by counting the total number of lobsters in the net. In this calculation, life grading as well as grading or sizing is also carried out. The size of the lobster will be separated into two parts or four parts depending on the need.

10. skin shedding process

In contrast to growing freshwater shrimp in an aquarium, lobsters will shed their skin every 3-7 days and the less they shed, the faster their growth. When it is stocked, usually the size of the locust remains the same, it will still be in the process of growing, so the size will be different. For this reason, a selection must be made each week so that the size of the lobster remains uniform and cannibalism can be controlled.

Pay attention when the crab molts and needs to be directed to the shelter so as not to be disturbed by other lobsters. If there are other lobsters approaching, they should stay away so as not to disturb or even hunt the lobster that is shedding its skin.

11. Disease and pest control

Spiny lobsters are not susceptible to pests and diseases, but the condition of the nets should still be checked in order to prevent pests. Crab sickness can occur if the net is not clean or if there is a lot of leftover food caught in the net. This rotten food remains a fertile medium for the growth of fungi and bacteria that can cause infections, especially during moulting or moulting where the condition of the lobster is still very weak.

12. lobster harvest

Harvesting can be done if the locusts have reached a weight of 150 to 200 grams per head from the sown seeds weighing 5 grams per head for 10 months of maintenance. These farmed lobsters will be marketed alive and without defects, so harvesting must be done with the utmost care. Harvesting is done by lifting the cages and then the lobsters are moved one by one into the Styrofoam container and taken to various regions or even exported alive. You also have to take into account the temperature, which is around 20 degrees Celsius with conditions without water but still wet.

Those are some ways we can stream hope this article can help. (Also read how to grow papuyu fish in canvas ponds.)