Effect of dietary incorporation of natural attractants on growth and survival during seed rearing of Indian butter catfish, Ompok bimaculatus

Abstract

The objective of the study was to assess the effect of dietary incorporation of different feed attractants viz. tubifex, earthworm and fish meal on growth and survival of O. bimaculatus (pabda fish) fry. Fifty numbers of fifteen days weaned fry (0.105±0.008g; 2.14±0.14cm) were stocked into each aerated aquariums (30.0 x 15.0 x 15.0 cm) following a completely randomized design (CRD) consisting of four treatments including the control with three replicates each. Four iso-nitrogenous purified diets were prepared including three treatment diets with attractants (5%) by replacing an appropriate amount of casein and cellulose and fed to the fishes twice daily. Results from the study showed that growth of fry as measured by final weight, weight gain, mean daily weight gain and specific growth rate of fries were significantly (p<0.05) higher in tubifex supplemented group and lower in control group. Survival was significantly higher in tubifex supplemented group (42.66±1.3%) and lower in control group. Moreover, other yield parameters such as total biomass, condition factor and performance index also followed the same trend as survival. Further, higher protease activity was-1-1 found in control group (2.233±0.038 units mg protein min) followed by earthworm (0.354±0.031 mg-1-1 protein min) supplemented group (p<0.05). The lipase and amylase activity were higher (p<0.05) in tubifex and control groups, respectively. It could be concluded that the dietary supplementation of tubifex at 5% inclusion level could be a promising aquaculture feeding strategy for pabda fish due to its rich nutrient content, increased feeding stimulation and more palatability.

Influence of light intensity and photoperiod on embryonic development, survival and growth of threatened catfish Ompok bimaculatus early larvae

“…The positive culture attributes of O. bimaculatus, alongside the need for conservation, necessitate land-based propagation through aquaculture means. Although successful induced breeding of O. bimaculatus is standardized as reported by several researchers (Bhowmick et al, 2000;Rawat et al, 2018), there seems to be an urgent need to resolve the low larval survival during the early stages.…”

“…Indian aquaculture mostly relies on farming of carps, especially Indian major carps (catla, rohu and mrigal) (Singh et al ., 2019). Catfishes of both indigenous and exotic origins have received due attention due to their therapeutic use and high price in the local markets (Rawat et al ., 2018). Recently, a native catfish, i.e ., Indian butter catfish Ompok bimaculatus (locally known as “pabda”), has gained much importance because of its superior taste, excellent nutritional profile, soft bony structure and rich lipoprotein content (Alam et al ., 2016).…”

“…The fish has a very good consumer preference in the far north‐eastern states, eastern states and other parts of India (Pradhan et al ., 2014). Moreover, the fish is under severe threat due to its declining population because of habitat loss, indiscriminate pesticide and weedicide use, loss of breeding grounds and overfishing of brood fish in wild (during breeding season) (Rawat et al ., 2018); therefore, it is presently listed under the “threatened” category (Gupta, 2015). The positive culture attributes of O. bimaculatus , alongside the need for conservation, necessitate land‐based propagation through aquaculture means.…”

“…The positive culture attributes of O. bimaculatus , alongside the need for conservation, necessitate land‐based propagation through aquaculture means. Although successful induced breeding of O. bimaculatus is standardized as reported by several researchers (Bhowmick et al ., 2000; Rawat et al ., 2018), there seems to be an urgent need to resolve the low larval survival during the early stages. Heavy cannibalism, inadequate larval food, improper feeding regime, stocking density and proper rearing condition are a few factors leading to poor survival of the fish (Chakrabarti et al ., 2012).…”

Larval growth and survival in Indian Butter Catfish, Ompok bimaculatus (Bloch): effect of light intensity and photoperiod

“…Secondly, due to the subsequent decline of population in wild, the species has been listed under threatened category (CAMP, 2008). In the midst, successful induced spawning of the said fish is documented earlier (Bhowmick et al ., 2000; Rawat et al ., 2018), however, high mortality due to cannibalism is one of the bottlenecks towards successful rearing of the larvae (Chakrabarti et al ., 2012). Invariably, there is an urgent need for optimise the larval rearing techniques to overcome production of quality seed through manipulated culture conditions.…”