Effect of environmental regulated water temperature variations on survival, growth performance and haematology of African catfish, Clarias gariepinus

Abstract

A 56 day study was carried out to evaluate effect of temperature changes on survival, growth performance and haematology of Clarias gariepinus fingerlings fed housefly maggot meal (magmeal) diet. Ninety (90) Clarias gariepinus fingerlings, (initial mean weight 4.33±0.03g) were subjected to different environmental regulated temperature conditions in three locations (laboratory, outdoor, greenhouse). The observed average temperature was 26.53±0.01°C, 26.06±0.01°C and 31.52±0.00°C for laboratory, outdoor, greenhouse, respectively. Ten fingerlings stocked per experimental tank were fed in triplicates at 5% body weight in two portions per day. It was observed that different water temperatures affected fish growth. All experimental fish in the greenhouse died after 8 days of exposure. This happened around 14.00 hrs when water temperature reached 40°C. There was no significant difference (P<0.5) in final weight, weight gain, food conversion ratio and standard growth rate among the fish reared in the laboratory (26.53°C) and outside tanks (26.06°C), respectively. The initial carcass crude protein (Cp) value was 58.97%. At the end of the experiment fish reared in the laboratory had a crude protein value of 63.97±0.06% Cp and those reared outdoor (26.06°C) had 71.28±0.00% Cp. No significant difference in values of packed cell volume; white blood cell; haemoglobin and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration was found between fish reared in laboratory (26.53°C) and outside (26.06°C). However, the red blood cell (RBC); mean corpuscular haemoglobin and mean corpuscular volume showed significant difference (P>0.05). The result confirms that Clarias gariepinus fingerlings reared at a mean temperature of 26°C (within the recorded optimal temperature range for good growth) performed well. Clarias gariepinus fingerlings are not able to survive when water temperature reaches to 40 o C.

Rising Temperature Effects on Growth and Gastric Emptying Time of Freshwater African Catfish (Clarias Gariepinus) Fingerlings

“…Similar to our study, numerous other freshwater fish species displayed great improvement in FCR and FCE as temperature increased [ 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 ]. However, there were two major concerns that arose from the FCR and FCE acquired in our study; (1) the growth performance parameters observed in our study did not match the feed utilization data obtained (no significant difference in growth between treatments), and (2) the value of FCR obtained in our study was noticeably poorer as compared to FCR values obtained in other studies [ 20 , 33 , 34 ]. The calculations for both FCR and FCE were complicated by the fact that mortality (induced by cannibalism) occurred in all treatments except 26 °C throughout the experimentation period, resulting in data variability.…”

“…Initial weight (W i ) in all treatments showed no significant difference ( p > 0.05), reflecting on the homogeneity in fish weight at the beginning of the experiment. This complements several previous observations which agreed that the optimal temperature for the best growth of African catfish lies between 26 and 32 °C [ 20 , 21 , 25 , 26 ].…”

“…Higher group temperatures (30 and 32 °C) displayed the best FCR and FCE. The reduced FCR at higher temperatures indicated that fish utilized feed very well [ 20 ], and there was an increase in protease activity and protein digestibility [ 27 , 28 ]. As temperature rose, so did appetite, leading FCE to increase [ 29 ].…”

“…Following the initial weight measurement, fish were weighed on a weekly basis. Weight records were used to analyse growth performance in terms of: Body weight gain (BWG, g) = (W f − W i ) × n [ 19 ], Specific growth rate (SGR, % day −1 ) = (lnW f − lnW i )/ t × 100 [ 20 ], Relative growth rate (RGR, %) = (W f − W i )/W i × 100 [ 21 ], Daily growth rate (DGR, % day −1 ) = (W f − W i )/ t × 100 [ 8 ], Survival (%) = n /initial number of fish stocked × 100 [ 22 ], Food consumption (FC, g day −1 ) = food consumed in g × t −1 [ 23 ], Food conversion ratio (FCR) = total feed fed/total weight gained [ 20 ], Food conversion efficiency (FCE, %) = (Weight gain/Feed intake) × 100 [ 24 ] …”

Blood biochemical variables, antioxidative status, and histological features of intestinal, gill, and liver tissues of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) exposed to high salinity and high-temperature stress

“…African catfish ( Clarias gariepinus ) can perform adequately if the water temperature is around 25–28 °C (Andrews and Stickney, 1972 ; Ogunji and Awoke, 2017 ). However, high temperatures adversely impact oxygen availability in the water (Buentello et al, 2000 ).…”