Total Heterotrophic Bacterial Load in the Gut of Detritus Fishes: A Case Study of Pichavaram Mangrove Environment, Southeast Coast, India

V Thangamani,N Rajendran

doi:10.12944/cwe.11.3.12

Abstract

Total heterotrophic bacterial (THB) load of detritus fin and shell fishes collected from mangrove environment were investigated. The collected fish and prawn samples were subjected to the microbiological study. The THB load was higher in milk fish (Chanos chanos) (2.24 x 105 CFU/g) followed by Indian white prawn (Fenneropenaeus indicus) (3.16 x 105 CFU/g) than the Liza parsia (1.90 x 105 CFU/g) and Penaeus monodon (1.88 x 105 CFU/g). A total of 355 bacterial strains were isolated and identified, in which 64, 57, 51, 47, 44, 42, 21, 29, 355 strains were belongs to Pseudomonas spp., Aeromonas spp., Bacillus spp., Enterobacter spp., Vibrio spp., Flavobacterium spp., Alcaligenes spp. and Acinetobacter spp., Pseudomonas spp. and Aeromonas spp., respectively. The present work showed that the Bacillus spp., were higher in the gut of fish and prawn samples studied. This work suggests that these bacteria can be effectively used as supplement in fish/prawn feed for commercial aquaculture or as probiotic to enhance the colonization in fish/prawn gut.

Highlights

The microorganism enters in to the digestive system of fish through food and environment and certainly not all bacteria in food which gain entry in the digestive tract of fishes establish themselves there[1]
Detritus fishes were studied for their total heterotrophic bacterial load
The total heterotrophic bacterial count was high in Milk fish (Chanos chanos) 2.24 x 105 Colony Forming Unit (CFU)/g followed by Golden mullet (Lisa parsia) 1.90 x 105 CFU/g (Fig.1)

Summary

Introduction

The microorganism enters in to the digestive system of fish through food and environment and certainly not all bacteria in food which gain entry in the digestive tract of fishes establish themselves there[1]. They play an important role in the formation of microbes in the digestive tract of fishes[2]. The composition of intestinal microflora of animals can be altered by age, nutritional condition, developmental stages and stress. These changes can tempt disease or beneficial effect on the host animals[4]. It is clear that bacterial species presents in the gut can influence the health and growth of the host

Methods

Results

Conclusion