Study on the Growth of <i>Macrobrachium gangeticum</i> Juveniles Fed on Different Diets in Tanks with and Without Soil-Base

Abstract

The efficacy of two formulated feeds (Feed-I & II) compounded with locally available feed ingredients and one commercial feed (Feed-III) was evaluated on the growth of Macrobrachium gangeticum juvenile. The experiments were conducted during January to April 2005 using 1000 l capacity FRP tanks. While one set of tanks was provided with soil-base, the other set was without soil-base. Each tank was stocked with hatchery-produced M. gangeticum seed of 3.8 - 4.8 g (90.6-97.6 mm) at density of 50/m3. Prawns were fed twice daily at 10% of the body weight. Results indicated that units with soil-base exhibited significantly higher (p<0.05) weight gain (113.15% in Feed-I; 40.82% in Feed-II; 66.67% in Feed-III) than without soil-base (70.73% in Feed-I; 37.50% in Feed-II; 42.50% in Feed-III). The performance of Feed-I in terms of weight gain and specific growth rate was the best followed by Feed-III and Feed-II.