Abstract

Production of small crayfish often occurs in Louisiana. This places those producers at an economic disadvantage since premium prices are paid only for the larger size grades. A study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of transferring small Procambarus clarkii from poor production ponds to newly established rice fields to achieve further growth and larger crayfish. Small, low-market-value crayfish harvested from commercial ponds in late May were relayed into newly established rice plots at two test densities (560 and 1120 kg ha^-1). After 30 days, crayfish were reharvested, graded, and sorted into three market size categories. Mean yields of 549 and 893 kg of crayfish ha^-1 were achieved from the low and high stocked fields, respectively. Rice was subsequently harvested, and grain yields averaged 5548, 4159, and 4028 kg ha^-1 for the rice-only, low stocked, and high stocked fields. respectively. The significant loss of grain yields in the crayfish/rice fields was attributed to the destruction of rice in the trapping lanes. An economic analysis for this inter-cropping scenario was conducted; based on differential 1991 prices for the three size categories of crayfish, average net returns were increased from $133.38 ha^-1 for rice alone to $308.75 and $429.78 ha^-1 for fields hosting the low and high populations of relayed crayfish, respectively.

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