Abstract
An experiment was conducted to compare the effects of fertilizer application alone, concentrate feeding alone and combination of fertilization and feeding on water quality parameters and growth performance of sex-reversed Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Three treatments (weekly fertilization with urea and Diammonium Phosphate (DAP), concentrate feeding at 5% of fish body weight and weekly fertilization with urea and DAP plus concentrate feeding at 2.5% of fish body weight) were randomly allotted to nine concrete tanks. Three fingerlings per m2 were stocked in the tanks and grown for 166 days. Results indicated that treatment had significant effect (p ≤ 0.001) on water Dissolved Oxygen (DO), conductivity, total dissolved solids, nitrate and phosphorus but not on pH, salinity, temperature, ammonia and alkalinity. Fish cultured under the combination of feeding and fertilization had higher (p ≤ 0.0001) weight gain (257.37 ± 5.71 g), growth rate (1.50 ± 0.04 g/day), yield (13,128.35 kg/ha/year) and lower Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) (1.89 ± 0.03) than those reared under feeding alone and fertilization alone. It is concluded that the combination of weekly fertilization and concentrate feeding at 2.5% of fish body weight is better than either weekly fertilization alone or feeding alone at 5% of fish body weight.
Highlights
Feed costs in aquaculture production account for approximately 50% of total operational costs (Rana et al, 2009) and is considered to be the major constraint for both small-scale fish farmers and commercial fishSebastian W
The natural food produced in the pond following the application of fertilizer of any type and form cannot suffice the nutritional requirements of fish for reasonable growth (Abbas et al, 2014), supplementation of artificial feed is inevitable for optimum fish growth and obtaining higher yields
The results indicate that fish cultured in concrete tanks under T1 had significantly lower final body weight, weight gain, growth rate, specific growth rate and yield than those cultured in tanks under T2 and T3
Summary
Feed costs in aquaculture production account for approximately 50% of total operational costs (Rana et al, 2009) and is considered to be the major constraint for both small-scale fish farmers and commercial fishSebastian W. Reducing the amount of feed provided to fish in a pond is a means of lowering costs and increasing profit margin. One way of reducing cost is fertilizer application. Fertilization of fish pond has been shown to increase fish yield by increasing primary productivity through released inorganic nutrients, or by providing organic carbon through heterotrophic pathways (Knud-Hansen et al, 1991). Availability of natural food in pond water reduces fish requirement for artificial feeds, leading to low production costs and increased farm income. The natural food produced in the pond following the application of fertilizer of any type and form cannot suffice the nutritional requirements of fish for reasonable growth (Abbas et al, 2014), supplementation of artificial feed is inevitable for optimum fish growth and obtaining higher yields
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