Abstract
The experiment was carried out in 1984 in a coastal lake near Bergen, Norway. A total of four (later eight) groups of Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar) fry were start-fed with live zooplankton delivered by a pump. Small fine-meshed net pens were used. Supplemental feed promoted additional growth after the start-feeding phase. The fish in zooplankton-fed groups increased their average length by 0·15 mm/day during the first 30 days compared with 0·08 mm/day in fish given both zooplankton and dry feed. Initial food lack (low density of cladocerans) is the main explanation for the low growth rates. Food selection and pump-increased zooplankton capture probabilities are also discussed. An unexpected avoidance of calanoid copepods, even when debilitated, was observed at the end of the experiment when other potential prey species were scarce. Even Daphnia were not preferred as expected. Live zooplankton is recommended for initial start-feeding, but dry food should be available to salmon when the yolksac has been absorbed.
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