Response to selection and heritability for growth in the Kuruma prawn, Penaeus japonicus

Divergent selection for High (H) and Low (L) growth was carried out for a single generation with the aim of measuring response to selection and heritability of growth in Penaeus japonicus. H and L growth (weight at 6 months of age) parents were selected from a commercial prawn pond which had been stocked with post-larvae from wild caught broodstock. Offspring of H x H, L X L and reciprocally mated (H x L, L x H) parents were reared and grown out in laboratory tanks. The direct response to one generation of selection averaged 10.7%, being 8.3% for high growth and 13.1% for low growth. Responses at other ages averaged 5.7, 6.9 and 7.9% at 3, 4 and 5 months, respectively, The average realised heritability for weight at 6 months of age was 23.4% which did not differ significantly from the estimate from the regression of offspring on mid parent of 27.7% It was concluded that the heritability of growth in P. japonicus is moderate but that rates of response to selection will be high largely due to the high levels of natural variation. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.