Pirarucu: from its origins to commercial breeding / Pirarucu: das origens ao melhoramento comercial

Because the captive breeding of pirarucu is a growing market segment with great potential, some Brazilian states in partnership with animal protection organizations and educational/research institutions have encouraged the activity, making it possible to monitor and preserve natural stocks and consequently prevent the extinction of the species. Commonly known as “pirarucu” in Brazil and “paiche” in Peru, Arapaima gigas is reported as one of the largest scaled freshwater fish in the world, with a carcass yield of around 60% and a filet yield of over 45%. The species is traditionally marketed in Brazil as a dry-salted food called “Brazilian cod”. Although much remains to be done for the captive breeding of pirarucu to be fully controlled, especially in terms of feeding and reproduction, research has been carried out with this purpose. In this scenario, the present literature review has been undertaken to elucidate the most information possible about the classification, biological aspects, production methods and breeding of pirarucu in Brazil