Re: [RML] Astaxanthin in Aquaculture?

Bruce Hansen (bhansen at ozemail.com.au)
Sun, 5 Apr 1998 00:46:24 +1000

Gary

There is a lake on Fraser Island called Red Lagoon where the M. duboulayi
are a rich maroon suffusion over the normal colours. They also have a
slightly humped shape but everything in that lake has a reddish colour due
to an algae that seems to colour it. That colour tends to gradually fade in
captivity so perhaps this is another example.

Regards,
Bruce.

Bruce Hansen, ANGFA, caring for our aquatic ecosystems.

Please visit us at http://www.ozemail.com.au/~fisher/angfa.htm

----------
> From: Gary Lange <gwlange at stlnet.com>
> To: rainbowfish list <rainbowfish at pcug.org.au>
> Subject: [RML] Astaxanthin in Aquaculture?
> Date: Saturday, 4 April 1998 14:42
>
> Astaxanthin is a natural carotenoid that is in the diet of many
crustaceans.
> It is now being used to help put the red back in farmed salmon. It is
being
> farmed from algae from several companies around the world now for that
purpose.
> It also supposedly helps with the fertility of hens and increases the
colour
> in the yolks (supposedly favored by northern europeans). This is also
supposed
> to enhance the effectiveness of the immune system.
>
> I think this is also one of the compounds that is found in brine shrimp
and
> things like daphnia and other "wild" critters.
>
> My question is: has anyone tried to use this in an aquaculture type
setting
> to put brighter colors (naturally) on tropical fish? If this is one of
the
> main carotenoids that produces the great colors of outdoor fish then this
might
> be a good thing to be adding to our food for our indoor fish.
>
> Gary Lange
> gwlange at STLNET.com
> Rainbowfish Study Group of North America
> http://home.stlnet.com/~gwlange/rainbowfish.index.html
>