Evaluation of growth performance of Clarias gariepinus larvae fed artemia and aqualis starter feeds

A feeding trial, involving the use of two starter diets (artemia and aqualis) was carried out in the laboratory, to evaluate the growth performance of C. gariepinus larvae fed artemia and aqualis fish feeds. A total of 200 (48 hours old C. gariepinus larvae) of mean weight 4.8 ± 0.01mg and length 6.16 ± 0.03mm were reared for 21 days in a plastic aquarium tank of (40c m x 25 cm x 25 cm) dimension. The experiment was done for 12 hours static and 12 hours flow-through periods. The results obtained indicated no significant difference (p>0.05) in the physico-chemical parameters for all treatments in both the static and flow-through periods, however, ammonia was above the acceptable limit while nitrite and nitrate were present in low quantities, in the static water periods. These values were within the ideal range for aquaculture practice. Survival rate (%) was highest in larvae fed aqualis (58.78 ± 11.96) and low in larvae fed artemia (49.61 20.77). Artemia fed larvae recorded higher weight gain (24.64± 14.45 mg) than aqualis (15.76 ±8.83 mg). The feed in this experiment showed commendable performance in survival and growth parameters of the fish.Keywords: Artemia, aqualis, larvae, growth performance, surviva