| Decapsulated <i>Artemia</i> cysts have been evaluated as a direct food source for larvae of the carp <i>Cyprinus carpio</i> L. All decapsulated cyst diets gave excellent survival of carp larvae during the first two weeks of culturing. Unlike traditionally brine-stored decapsulated cysts, dried <i>Artemia</i> embryos provided growth results comparable to those obtained with freshly hatched <i>Artemia</i> nauplii. Furthermore, except for <i>Artemia</i> embryos that lost their hatchability after long-term storage in air, several other inactivation treatments, simulating improper harvesting and processing of cysts, did not produce a significant decrease in the nutritional quality of the decapsulated... |
