Growth performance of fry of the black-spot barb Puntius fi lamentosus (Valenciennes, 1844) fed live feeds and artifi cial feed

Abstract

Effi cacy of feeding with different live feeds as well as artifi cial feed on growth performance of black-spot barb Puntius filamentosus fry was evaluated by conducting a feeding experiment for a period of 45 days. The fishes (average weight - 121.93 mg; average length - 28.8 mm) were fed under four treatments viz., artifi cial feed, Tubifex worm, Artemia nauplii and mixed zooplankton. Results showed that the fry fed Tubifex and zooplankton were similar in growth parameters and had signifi cantly (p < 0.05) higher fi nal length, weight, specifi c growth rate (SGR), percent weight gain and percent length gain than those fed with artifi cial feed and live Artemia. No difference in growth parameters was found between the fry fed on artifi cial feed and Artemia. No signifi cant difference was observed in survival rate among the treatments with different live feeds and artifi cial feed. The present results suggest that live feeds such as Tubifex and zooplankton are suitable for feeding fry of black-spot barb and could be considered as affordable options compared to costlier Artemia nauplii or artifi cial feed for small scale hatcheries.