Soft-shell mud crab production for export in Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, India

In West Bengal wild-caught juvenile and sub-adult orange-clawed mud crabs (Scylla olivacea) are purchased by farms for grow out, fattening, and the production of soft-shell crab for export. This article describes the management practices for producing soft-shell mud crab at National Aqua Farm, using individual box enclosures, and their subsequent processing and packing for export.

Details of the crab rearing unit are provided, along with observations of moulting cycles and post-harvest management of soft shell mud crab.