Abstract
Stocking density of fish is species specific and is considered as one of the crucial aspects for optimizing feed and water-quality management in biofloc system. The present study was carried out to determine the optimum stocking density of a prime aquaculture species, climbing perch Anabas testudineus in biofloc system. Fish fingerlings with a mean initial weight of 0.80 ± 0.02 g were reared in biofloc tanks for 13 weeks under three different stocking densities, 300 (T-300), 450 (T-450), and 600 (T-600) fish m−3 in triplicates, and the fish were fed with a commercial diet at 3% of their body weight. At final harvest, significant differences in growth and body composition were observed among the treatments. T-300 and T-450 showed similar growth pattern (p > 0.05), while fish in T-600 registered significantly poor growth (p < 0.05). The fitted models for all the growth variables were quadratic, and daily individual feed intake was linear. Although the regression model for yield was not significant (p = 0.072), the highest yield (kg m−3) was attained in T-450. Dry matter, protein, and lipid content of fish remained unaffected (p > 0.05), while significant (p < 0.05) difference in ash content was observed among the treatments with the highest being found in fish from T-600. These results suggest that at the initial stage of culture the optimum stocking density of climbing perch in biofloc system is 300–450 fish m−3 although higher stocking might be feasible considering periodic water exchange and solid management, a proposition awaits further elucidation.
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The dataset generated and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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This experiment has been made possible through general material support from Solidaridad Network Asia, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
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Debnath, S., Ahmed, M.U., Parvez, M.S. et al. Effect of stocking density on growth performance and body composition of climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) in biofloc system. Aquacult Int 30, 1089–1100 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-021-00812-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-021-00812-4