Evaluation of three forms of feed on growth and survival of rohu Labeo rohita (Hamilton, 1822) juveniles reared in outdoor tanks

Abstract

A feeding trial for 90 days duration was conducted to study the efficacy of three forms of feed (dough, sinking and floating feeds) on growth performance and survival of rohu Labeo rohita (Hammilton, 1822) juveniles. Four hundred and fifty fingerlings (average weight 8.7±0.7 g, average length 9.68±0.37 cm) were randomly distributed into nine large outdoor concrete tanks (50 m2 ), grouped into three treatments with three replicates each. Three forms of diet designated as T1 (dough feed), T2 (sinking pellets) and T3 (floating pellets), prepared from the same quantity of ingredients, were fed at 8% of biomass twice a day. The results revealed significantly higher weight gain, specific growth rate (SGR) and lower feed conversion ratio (FCR) in sinking pellet fed group (p<0.05). Further, the biomass yield was also higher in T2 despite lower juvenile survival as compared to the other groups. However, there was no significant difference in growth performance of juveniles between T1 and T3 groups (p>0.05). Though rohu is known to feed from column to bottom zones, the present results revealed better efficacy of sinking pellet over dough or floating form to improve the growth performance of the species during juvenile rearing.

Keywords: Condition factor, Feed form, Growth, Labeo rohita, Water quality, Yield