How Does a Shrimp Farm Work?
Hatcheries The commercial production of shrimp for human consumption begins in a hatchery, where female shrimp lay their eggs. Each female can produce between 50,000 to 1,000,000 eggs in one cycle. The survival rate of the eggs varies according to the quality of the hatchery, but the average is about 50 percent. The eggs are left to hatch in very large tanks that are mechanically controlled. It takes approximately one day for the nauplii, or first stage shrimp, to emerge from the egg. They feed on their egg yokes until they reach the second stage of development, at which time they begin to eat the algae and other feeds prepared by the farm. Nurseries When the larvae reach the fourth stage of growth, they are called postlarvae. At this time, they are moved from the hatchery to the nursery. Here they spend about three weeks eating zooplankton and other nursery feeds until they come close to reaching adulthood. The nursery may be at the same shrimp farm as the hatchery if it is a very lar
