Optimisation of the Culture Conditions of Nannocalanus minor (Copepoda: Calanoida)

By studying the biology of copepods, including their growth, survival and reproductive behaviour, we can obtain baseline information on the culture of particular species at the laboratory- and pilot-scale levels. This information can be used in the development of feed for the commercial production of fish seeds. Most of the research conducted to date has focused on copepod taxonomy and ecology. However, studies on the biology of copepods are limited. Amongst the marine copepods, experimental work has been conducted with different species of the genus Oithona by Murphy (1923), Gibbons and Ogilvie (1933), Rao (1958), Haq (1965), Goswami (1975), Lampitt (1978), Perumal et al. (2000) and Santhanam and Perumal (2002). Very limited reports are available on the biology of copepods in Indian waters that investigate feeding behaviour, developmental biology and reproductive biology (Rao 1958; Krishnaswamy 1950; Goswami 1975; Saraswathy and Santhakumari 1982; Shrivastava et al. 1999; Perumal et al. 2000; Santhanam and Perumal 2002).