Abstract
Copepods are an important food source for many economically important fish larvae. Especially the larvae of copepod, compared to rotifers and artemia, they are a very promising live feed. Bestiolina amoyensis with small body size, nutrient-rich, excellent reproductive capacity and wide range of adaptability, making it being a promising biological feed for aquaculture. However, the effects of different algal diets on the growth and development of B. amoyensis larvae have not been studied. In this study, Isochrysis galbana (Iso), Pavlova viridis (Pav) and Chaetoceros miielleri (Cha) were selected to feed larvae in single- or mixed-species diets: Iso, Pav, Cha, Iso + Pav, Iso + Cha, Pav + Cha, Iso + Pav + Cha. The effects were evaluated by several growth and development indicators, including survival rate, ingestion, development time, and carbon content. The larvae fed Iso or Iso + Pav + Cha had the highest survival rates compared with other diet combinations. The development time of the larvae fed Cha was longer compared with all other algal diets. Ingestion by nauplii (1.72 × 105 cells/ind) and copepodites (3.82 × 105 cells/ind) was highest when fed Iso. The larvae fed a 3-species diet had the highest carbon content compared with other algal diets. Our findings demonstrate that a combination of the 3 species could maximize growth and development of B. amoyensis larvae.