North Queensland Crayfish Farmer’s Association have successfully completed the second breeding cycle of a five year program to produce a special strain of redclaw bred for faster growth and that are disease free.

The project has been made possible by significant financial support from the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) and with the guidance of the Aquaculture and Veterinary Science Departments of James Cook University. The entire project is being conducted on a farm on the Atherton Tableland and staffed by NQ farmers who have the commitment and determination to ensure its success.

Following a controlled mating phase, the redclaw eggs are stripped from the female and hatched in a commercially sized incubator capable of producing 200,000 stage 3 juveniles (S3J) per batch. Using the incubator breaks the disease cycle from female to juvenile.

In 2007, some 90,000 S3J were produced in the incubator and returned to participating farms for an 8 month growout period. These redclaw were harvested in August 2008 and the data collected showed a 25% improvement in growth rate compared to redclaw grown by conventional means. This is before any selection had taken place and is attributable to the animals being free of disease.

Throughout 2008, JCU have been involved, completing a genetic audit and conducting tests to prove the health status of the redclaw produced. The genetic audit proved that sufficient genetic diversity existed within the program to prevent inbreeding depression. Spectacular results were obtained from the disease testing, proving that none of the six previously identified generic diseases were present in the stock bred from the incubator at the end of the growout period.

Following the harvest in August 2008, the cycle started again. Currently the second batch of S3J are being distributed to the participating farms. This year’s batch have had the benefit of selection and the results are eagerly awaited.

To assist funding the project, S3J are available for sale to industry members. For more information contact John Stevenson