Tips & Tricks for Success in Giving Minerals to Vaname Shrimp

Vaname shrimp need protein, fat, vitamins, carbohydrates, and minerals for their growth process. The mineral requirements for vannamei shrimp range from 2-5% from the amount of shrimp feed. However, apart from feed, shrimp can absorb minerals from the pond environment.

The addition of minerals is needed for waters with low mineral content, for example from water sources with low salinity such as groundwater (drilled wells). Organisms in ponds other than cultivated shrimp, such as plankton and bacteria also use minerals in their survival, so that the mineral content in pond ponds will decrease. Therefore, the addition of minerals also needs to be done.

Considering the role of minerals which are quite crucial to neutralize the pH of the water, decompose harmful compounds, increase the growth of plankton in the pond, and help the molting process in shrimp, it is important to pay attention. When the mineral content decreases, the risk of molting failure and the shrimp dying due to exposure to disease increases. Therefore, you need to find out how to maintain the mineral content for vannamei shrimp.

Minerals for Shrimp

The role of minerals for vaname shrimp is not much different from the role of protein or vitamins needed by shrimp for the shrimp growth process. Broadly speaking, minerals as inorganic components function to maintain the body's metabolism, help form bones, teeth and carapace, as well as maintain acid-base balance and osmotic pressure in the body. The specific benefits of minerals for shrimp and fish include:

1. Acts as the main constituent of the skeletal structure of shrimp, such as shells, bones and teeth.
2. Plays a role in encouraging the formation of new skin on shrimp.
3. Plays a role in activating the metabolic system or the process of transferring electrons and cofactors so that shrimp have good body immunity.
4. Plays a role as a controller of osmotic balance and a regulator of water and solubility regulation in the shrimp body.
5. Serves as an oxygen carrier in the blood and helps activate variations of enzyme systems in the shrimp body.

The mineral (salt) content of seawater is usually quite complete, which is around 31-38 grams/kg or the equivalent of 31-38%. This is different from the condition of the mineral content in pond ponds which has the potential to decrease due to organic waste such as leftover feed and mineral deposits which are absorbed into the surface of the pond soil. This condition can be worse if the stocking density of shrimp is higher, so you need to prepare more mineral supplies.

The mineral requirements for vannamei shrimp are not too much, namely only 2-5% of the total feed. The grouping of minerals needed by vannamei shrimp is divided into two, namely micro minerals and macro minerals.

1. Micro Minerals for Shrimp

Vaname shrimp need micro minerals to increase the body's immunity more optimally because it contains iron and zinc. The elements included in micro minerals include Zinc (Zn), Cobalt (Co), Chrom (Cr), Iodine (I), Selenium (Se), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Fluorine (F). ), Ferrum (Fe), and Nickel (Ni).

2. Macro Minerals for Shrimp

Meanwhile, the chemical elements belonging to the micro minerals include Magnesium, Sodium, Calcium, Potassium, Phosphorus, Sulfur, and Chlorine. These elements play a role in the formation of the body's skeletal structures, such as bones, teeth and shells, and help regulate the chemical communications that occur in the brain.

Differences between Micro Minerals and Macro Minerals

There are two differences between micro minerals and macro minerals, namely based on their function or role and the amount needed by the body. Based on its function, organisms such as shrimp need micro minerals to increase their body's immunity so that shrimp will be more optimally healthy. In contrast to macro minerals which play an important role in the process of forming the main skeletal structures such as bones, teeth and shells.

Then, based on the amount, shrimp need micro minerals in smaller amounts than macro minerals. As a comparison, the human body is composed of minerals as much as 1% of the total human weight, while micro minerals are only 0.01%. 

Dosage and Method of Giving Minerals for Vaname Shrimp

Each mineral element needed by shrimp is different, even for one type of shrimp with another type it will be different. Even though the mineral content in the main raw material for shrimp feed is only a little, so you need to add some ingredients that have high mineral content. The following table provides additional minerals for shrimp:

Many cases have occurred where vannamei shrimp have nutritional deficiencies, or an easy-to-understand term is malnutrition. The cause of deficiency in shrimp is a lack of minerals from feed or the environment, and excess mineral content so that the absorption of other mineral elements is disrupted.

To overcome this situation, you need to carry out interrelationships (reciprocity) between mineral elements when feeding. There are two ways to carry out interrelation, namely one-way interrelation and two opposite directions.

For example, absorption of Zinc (Zn) will decrease when the content of Calcium (Ca) in the feed is excessive, but the opposite condition will not necessarily occur. Therefore, to know for sure the right dosage, you need to anticipate the occurrence of deficiencies between these mineral elements.

Then other elements such as Mg, Mn, Be, Ca, Fe, and Al will affect the absorption of P and vice versa. Low levels of Cu element together with high Mo elements will eliminate P elements in the shrimp body. Because Cu functions to carry out phospholipid photosynthesis. 

Meanwhile, the element calcium intercorrelate with vitamin D to form vitamin D3. Other vitamins that interact with element P include vitamins B1, B6, and niacin. Vitamin E will interact with Se, then Se and Fe will interact with PUFA (Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids).

Impact of Mineral Deficiency on Shrimp

If the mineral content in shrimp ponds decreases, the impact is quite fatal. Starting from the disruption of the pond ecosystem, microorganisms such as plankton or phytoplankton cannot develop properly, making it difficult to break down harmful elements in the pond. 

Then, the quality of the water begins to be disturbed and makes the shrimp stressed so that they are easily exposed to bacteria and disease. Symptoms of stress on shrimp can be seen when the texture of the shrimp shell feels soft. If this is left alone, the shrimp will quickly die without the shell. Meanwhile, cases of mass molting in shrimp also occur due to low water pH and alkalinity. 

Therefore, before the molting process, the farmers usually start adding mineral content. Ideally the molting process will occur every 3-8 weeks during the spawning or laying period. However, recent research has stated that the molting process occurs during the full moon. Research from Rusaini and Owens (2019) states that molting varies quite a lot in every full moon, the highest molting occurs during the newmoon or a new month of 36,96%.

The way to overcome this, you can use special mineral products for vannamei shrimp such as Fixed minerals. You can add vitamins and minerals to the shrimp feed in the first week of DOC or two weeks after the shrimp are stocked. It is enough to provide vitamins and minerals once a day when feeding in large quantities. For example, the schedule for feeding vannamei shrimp 3 times a day, namely in the morning, afternoon and evening. The amount of feeding during the day is more than in the morning and evening, so giving special vitamins to increase minerals only during the day. You need to add vitamins, minerals, probiotics, to enzymes to maintain the health of the shrimp while accelerating their growth.

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