Studies to establish an optimal diet for the decapod crab Carcinus maenas under culture conditions

The maintenance of a uniform diet for Carcinus maenas (L.), where this crab is used as test animal in the laboratory, precludes the use of fresh food, e. g. mussels, for many reasons; not the least of these is the seasonal variation in the nutritive value of such food. Different types of fresh food are variably accepted by C. maenas, dependent on such factors as taste and the consistency of the food. The crabs will eat freeze-dried food set in agar-agar. A diet of this food is, however, inferior to one of fresh food as its preparation destroys essential substances and storage causes aging. In order to eliminate these disadvantages, a better quality artificial diet was developed, one which nevertheless does not attain the quality of fresh food. This diet can be further improved by varying the proportions of the individual constitutents.