Feeding management and waste production in semi-intensive farming of penaeus monodon (fab.) at different stocking densities

Abstract

Studies on waste production and feeding management of Penaeusmonodon in semi-intensive culture system were carried out for foursuccessive crops at a commercial farm (M/S Suryo Udyog Ltd.) at Chandipur Coastof Orissa, India, at six different stocking densities. The prescribed feedingprogramme of C.P. Group, Thailand (NOVO-shrimp feed) were adopted andstandardized during first two crops and the standardized feeding scheme wasevaluated in the last two crops. Influence of standardized feeding programme onaverage feed conversion ratio (FCR) of P. monodon washighlysignificant (p < 0.001) against that of manufacturer's (NOVO-feed)prescribedfeeding programme. A feeding frequency of more than four times a day showed noimprovement in growth rate and there was no change in diurnal feeding habitprobably due to the fact that, in scientific farming, aquatic environment isartificially controlled. It was also observed that, as the age and weight ofshrimp increases, feed % decreases from 8.8 to 1.9% and lift net(LN)% increases from 2.4 to 4.3% for 1–40 gmeanbody weight of P. monodon respectively. The higher thestockingdensity, the higher was the FCR and sedimentation rate. In the presentexperiment,the sedimentation rate was estimated to be 49.5 m3 (dryvolume)/1000.0 kg of shrimp biomass. The average quantity of wastematter production was only 571.4 kg of organic matter, 10.21kg of nitrogen and 0.527 kg of phosphorus at anaverage FCR of 1.437 and stocking density of 22.5 pcs m-2 during the four crop experimental period.