The Utility of Dietary Phosphorus Enrichment During Transition to Formulated Feeds of Juvenile Abalone Haliotis tuberculata

Abstract

Sustaining the growth of abalone aquaculture globally requires farm operators to satisfy the specific diet requirements of the particular abalone species grown. Components of commercial aquaculture feeds usually contain animal protein in the form of fishmeal. Rather than adding generic animal protein foodstuffs, formulated diets may be more effective when supplemented with particular substances of metabolic use to the abalone. The inclusion of animal proteins may have physiological demands on the growth and survival of different species of abalone as formulated feeds change the colour of the shell bands and the components of the feed may not exist in the natural diet of abalone. Inclusion and enrichment of phosphorus in mixed macroalgal-meal diets for juvenile abalone Haliotis tuberculata was investigated. Macroalgae is the natural diet for juvenile and adult abalone and can be limiting in bioavailable phosphorus. Increasing the available dietary phosphorus content in the diet of juvenile H. tuberculata to 0.9% and 1.5% increased growth rates in shell length compared to Palmaria palmata diet (P