Growth and Production Characters of African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Stocked at different Stocking Densities in Earthen Ponds under Local Climatic Conditions of Pakistan
Growth and Production Characters of African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Stocked at different Stocking Densities in Earthen Ponds under Local Climatic Conditions of Pakistan
Hasina Basharat1, Muhammad Ramzan Ali2*, Aziz Ahmed2, Muhammad Zubair Anjum1 and Shamim Akhter1
ABSTRACT
The optimization of the stocking densities in earthen ponds of African catfish is necessary for efficient management, increase in fish production and to maximize the return on investment. So, this study was carried out to investigate the influence of various stocking densities on the production and economic character of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) in Pakistan. After the successful transportation and acclimatization of African catfish, further experiment was performed for optimization of stocking densities in African catfish. For this purpose. fish was stocked at 10,000;15,000 and 20,000 fish/acre in earthen ponds for a period of 120 days. The experimental design was CRD with three treatments (10,000, 15,000 and 20,000 fish/acre) and three replicates (9 earthen ponds of 0.04 ha). Fish was fed three time at rate of 4% of total wet fish body weight daily on sinking pellets containing 35% CP manufactured from locally available ingredients. Sampling on fortnightly basis was done from each pond using drag net (mesh size 3 cm) to record data on growth. At the end of the experiment total number of fish was counted from each pond and various production characteristics were determined for different stocking densities. Water quality analysis was performed for each treatment to record variations for each treatment. The ANOVA (analysis of variance) test was performed to analyze the difference between the means among the three different stocking densities. Significant weight gain (P>0.05) was achieved at stocking densities of 10,000 and 15,000 /acre as compared to fish stocked at highest stocking densities of 20,000 fish/acre. However economic benefits showed increasing trend with increasing stocking densities. By increasing the stocking density, the production parameters were directly increasing, ultimate yield were higher at 20,000 fish/acre followed by 15,000 and 10,000/acre. Financial analysis assessment of the present study showed encouraging net earnings at all stocking densities. Highest net profit as well as net production achieved at a stocking density of 20,000/acre followed by 15,000 and 10,000/acre stocking density. From this study it can be concluded that African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) can be cultured at elevated stocking densities for gaining maximum production in Pakistan.
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