Effects of salinity and feeding regime on growth rate of India prawn Penaeus indicus

Abstract

This factorial experiment was to evaluate the growth rate of Penaeus indicus juveniles cultured at two salinities (15 or 30 ppt) and fed with two feeding regimes (day time only or day and night). Indian prawn Penaeus indicus with an initial weight of 0,28 ± 0,09 g and an initial length of 42,7 ± 3,7 mm were cultured in 200-L tanks containing 150 L of water for 42 days. Results showed that salinity significantly affect survival of prawn (P<0.05). Survival rate of prawn cultured at 30 ppt (75 ± 9.5%) was higher than those cultured at 15 ppt (26.9 ± 3.2%). Night-time feeding was found to improve prawn growth rate by 4.5% (P<0.05). These results indicated that both salinity and feeding regime strongly affect survival and growth rate of Penaeus indicus. Howewer, there no interaction between feeding regime and salinity was detected. It is recommended that Penaeus indicus should be farmed at salinities close to 30 ppt and fed both day and night for growth improvement in aquaculture. Keyword: salinity, night feeding, survival, growth rate Penaeus indicus