Aquaculture Methods and Early Growth of Juvenile Horseshoe Crabs (Limulus polyphemus)

Current knowledge of horseshoe crabs (HSC) has been derived, in large part, from field studies. Comprehending the biology and conservation of HSC could be facilitated and augmented by understanding and improving their culture methods. Althoughmany researchers and even lay people are capable of getting animals to the early stages of development, very few are successful in getting them to survive for longer periods of time. The Aquatic Research and Environmental Assessment Center (AREAC) has been successful in rearing HSC in annual cohorts, some for more than 7 years. We have used indoor recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) containing medium prepared with artificial sea salts. Animals have been given various diets, including both natural and specially formulated feeds. We have traced the earliest developmental stages through juvenile development in animals that were derived from eggs fertilized in the field and laboratory. This chapter will discuss the problems and successes of culturing adult and developing HSC in RAS, methods of fertilization, feed regimes, growth, and survivorship and observations on HSC development from egg to juvenile.