Growth performance and survival of <i>Clarias gariepinus</i> under varying stocking density

Abstract

The experiment evaluated the growth performance and survival of Clarias gariepinus under varying stocking density. Three-day-old hatchlings (15,750 in number) were selected from the bred population after absorption of their yolk sac and were randomly stocked at three different densities of 40 fish/litre (T1), 20 fish/litre (T2) and 10 fish/litre (T3). The fish were sampled every 10 days for 60 days. The result showed that fish in T3 has the highest mean final weight which was not significantly different (p>0.05) from the value recorded in T2 but was significantly different (p<0.05) from the value recorded in T1. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the specific growth rate among the treatments, the highest was recorded in T3 while the least was recorded in T1. The highest performance index was recorded in T3 and was significantly different (p<0.05) compared to other treatments with higher stocking densities, the least was recorded in treatment with the highest stocking density (T1). The percentage survival (58.80±2.55) at the end of the experiment in T3 was significantly higher compared to T1 (16.72±1.72) and T2 (28.97±0.58). It could be concluded that lower stocking density will increase the survival as well as enhance the growth performance of C. gariepinus fingerlings.

Keywords: Aquaculture, Fish fry, Hatchery, Stocking density