Survival rate ability of unfed eel Anguilla b. bicolor in different sizes and sources of eel caught

Abstract

World consumption of eel nowadays still depend on mostly (80%) from Aquaculture industry. However, the eel seed of glass eel, elver either bigger sizes of eel juvenile, still also depend on the wild caught. The study aims to test the survival rate of unfed eel from different sources of seed and sizes. The eel collected from five riverine of catch area i.e. Dlangu of Purworejo (CA I), Larangan of Nusawungu (CA II), Ciberem of Kaliwungu (CA III), Patimuan creek (CA IV), and Ciwulan riverine of Tasikmalaya (CA V) which were caught in August 2018. The other eels were caught in July 2019 collected from Segoro Anakan (CA VI), Buton Cilacap of Indian Ocean Coast Line (CAVII), Gatel riverine of Nusawungu (CA VIII) and Pasir creek of Sidobunder Puring, Kebumen (CA IX). The eel sizes were grouped into four class of sizes i.e. glass eel (GE), small pencil (‘sp’), big pencil (‘bp’) and consumption size (Co) as a comparator. For the shipment trials, eel were transported from those caught area to Semarang (ranging between 180 to 240 km distances) by normal seeds package with oxygenated plastic bag. Unfed trials, the eel were kept in a limited water volume without aeration and the water replaced every day. Experiment was conducted during 30 days without feeding. The result shows that the sizes of eel i.e. GE, SP, BP, and Con can survive during shipment with 23 and 27 h duration time. Unfed treatment, the best survival rate found in ‘Co’ (52 %) followed by ‘bp’ (34 %), ‘sp’ (33 %) during 30 days without food and aeration. However, the GE found 100 % death during 18 days in unfed conditions. Eel seed sources comparison shows significantly different (α < 0.05) among caught area locations. These can be conclude that eel seeds of GE size can be keep during delivery transportation (shipment) without food given for 23 h, and can be kept prior to other purposes for approx. fortnight while ‘sp’ and ‘bp’ sizes for mostly one month.