Title : Use of vegetable oils in aquaculture feed on the growth performance and chemical composition of the flesh of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) in the West Highlands region of Cameroon
Abstract:
The study of the effect of the type of vegetable oils in the food on the growth performance and the chemical composition of the flesh of Clarias gariepinus was carried out in 60 days within the Application and Research Farm of the University of Dschang. The objective of this study was to search for the best source of lipid among the vegetable oils used in African catfish food. For this purpose, three sources of vegetable oils, palm, cotton and sunflower oil representing respectively the T1, T2 and T3 rations were tested in triplicate on 225 juveniles with an initial average weight of 12.64±1.12 g and average total length 11.24±0.52 cm. The test was carried out in 09 floating happas installed in a pond. During the two months of the trial, the fish were fed twice a day. Juvenile growth parameters as well as water physico-chemistry were measured every 14 days. At the end of the trial, the results showed that the survival rate varied significantly (p<0.05) with the sources of vegetable oils in the food, from 61.33±18.47 to 74.67±2.30% with the highest value obtained in fish having received the T2 ration (cottonseed oil). The values ??of growth characteristics of C. gariepinus juveniles such as final live weight (40.48±1.20 g), weight gain (27.84±1.20g), length gain (4, 43±0.20 cm) and specific growth rate (1.93±0.46%/day) were significantly higher in fish fed the diet containing cottonseed oil. The values ??of the chemical composition of the flesh did not vary statistically. This study reveals that the presence of cotton oil in the ration of juvenile C. gariepinus offers the best survival and growth performance. In future investigations, it would be necessary to study the optimal rate of incorporation of cottonseed oil into the feed in pre-growout and growout on the growth performance and reproduction parameters of Clarias gariepinus.
Keywords: Clarias gariepinus; chemical composition; growth; vegetal oils; juveniles; survival
