Development of Effective Nursery Feed for Tiger Shrimp (Penaeus monodon)

Abstract

The present study was conducted to develop artificial diets for shrimp post-larvae using locally available ingredients, to develop nursery management techniques in a hapa system under pond conditions, and to determine the feed conversion ratio (FCR) and specific growth rate (SGR) for shrimp nursing under pond conditions. The growth trial was conducted at the Shrimp Research Station, Bagerhat, using aquarium water with a salinity of 10 ppt and a high water-exchange rate, with 50% of the water exchanged every three days. Post-larvae of Penaeus monodon were collected from Cox's Bazar and reared at a stocking density of 5 PLs/L in aquaria. The post-larvae were fed Feed-1, Feed-2, Feed-3, prepared with different compositions, and Feed-4, a commercial feed (Mega Pre-Nursery). To determine the growth and survival rates of P. monodon post-larvae under pond conditions, rearing experiments were carried out in glass nylon-net hapas using hatchery-produced post-larvae (PL-10). Twelve hapas, each measuring 4 m², were installed in ponds. Post-larvae (PL-10) were stocked at a rate of 500 PL/m² and reared for 45 days. Primary fertilization was applied using cow dung (10 ppm), coconut oilcake (20 ppm), urea (2 ppm), and superphosphate (2 ppm) to promote primary production in the ponds. Post-larvae of P. monodon obtained from Cox's Bazar were stocked at a rate of 700/m³ and fed Diet-1, Diet-2, Diet-3, and a commercial diet. The trial consisted of four treatments, each with three replications. The study revealed that, in the aquarium experiment, the highest final weight (0.09 ± 0.0006 g), specific growth rate (6.40%), and survival rate (55.7%) were obtained with Feed-3. The lowest FCR (1.52) was also found with Feed-3 among all four types of feed. In the pond nursing system, Feed-3 also showed better performance than the other feeds, with a final weight of 0.4328 ± 0.045 g, a specific growth rate of 6.45%, the lowest FCR of 1.35, and a survival rate of 73.4%. In contrast, Feed-1 showed lower performance than the other feeds. The results indicate that formulated feeds prepared from locally available ingredients produced better results and could be a useful option for shrimp nursing if the technique can be implemented on an experimental or commercial scale.