The Florida Division of Aquaculture has been designated by Florida Fish and Wildlife to determine who can be permitted to own and operate any culture system with redclaw. Evidently, the FF&W did not want redclaw to be permitted in the state at all, but was swayed to allow it under certain conditions (including tank heights being 1 ft above the flood plane) thru the Division of Aquaculture. The gentleman I spoke with stated that many of the original permit owners had trouble with the profitability of the redclaw since they are foragers and do not necessarily eat when fed. They also like to be in an enclosed environment similar to their natural home. Singular layer culture tanks deter them from mating and the water quality suffers from the deteriorating food. Although less likely to fight than prawn, many of the same elements of culture situations apply. The fresh water prawn, however, is not a prohibited animal.
I suggested to the Aquaculture Representative that culture in an Aquaponics situation would relieve at least some of these issues, to which he agreed, but it did not matter since the regulations require anyone who is to possess a certificate for the redclaw to operate a rather large commercial business, no personal or small operations of redclaw are allowed any longer due to the pervious inexperience operators who could not supply the redclaw with their needs in order to become profitable.
As for the Department of Aquaculture, I found the rep to be not only informative (as we conversed for about an hour regarding all things relative) but also helpful in trying to nail down some other possibilities for types of allowable fish, based on their environmental needs, which could possibly be cultured and profitable for foodstock .
So, in conclusion- sorry redclaw fans, but no dice to you guys here in Florida. Freshwater prawns are the ticket for you instead. Possibilities for future aquaculture fish- the hytec spec is acceptable for sure and has anyone ever thought about the peacock bass? I had often wondered if these were allowed, but they are not native either. Brought in for the bug population and sport fishing, they require live feed- minnows, but could they be brought to feed on SFL or even a SFL mix meal pellet?? They are legal and are prized for their flavor. More research is needed…my next mission?