Growth, haematology and serum biochemistry of african catfish clarias gariepinus fed diets containing mixture of processed moringa (moringa oleifera) leaf and kernel meal

The potential of blending soaked moringa (Moringa oleifera) leaf and fermented moringakernel as a substitute for fishmeal in the diet for Clarias gariepinus was investigated. Theleaves were soaked overnight while the seeds were defatted and subsequently fermentedwith Rhizopus stolonifer. Four approximately isonitrogenous (40 % crude protein) andiso-energetic (20 kJ/g) diets were formulated to contain graded levels (0, 20, 40 and 60%) of mixture (1:1) of soaked leaf and fermented kernel of moringa. The diets were fedto triplicates group of C. gariepinus (average weight, 8.87 ± 0.02 g) for 56 days. Growthperformance in terms of weight gain and specific growth rate in the group that receivedcontrol diet was significantly higher (p<0.05) than those that were reared on dietscontaining 40 and 60 % mixture of soaked moringa leaf and fermented kernel butstatistically similar (p>0.05) to the group fed with 20% of the mixture. The feedconversion ratio was statistically similar (p>0.05) in the control and dietary treatments.The haematological profile of the control group was similar (p>0.05) to all othertreatment groups in all the parameters examined; suggesting that there were nodeleterious health effects arising from incorporation of processed moringa leaf andkernel in the diets for C. gariepinus.Keywords: Clarias gariepinus, Moringa leaf and kernel, Growth performance, Nutrient utilizatio

Aquaculture Nutrition

Not AvailableA 75-day feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the nutritional implication of feeding diets containing graded levels of sundried cassava leaf meal (SCLM) to Labeo rohita fingerlings. Four isonitrogenous (300 g/kg crude protein) and isoenergetic (18 MJ/kg) diets were prepared by replacing de-oiled rice bran (DORB) with 0 (diet 1), 130 (diet 2), 260 (diet 3) and 390 g/kg (diet 4) of SCLM. The diets were fed to the triplicate groups of L. rohita fingerlings (average weight, 2.03 ? 0.03 g) in a completely randomized experimental design. At the end of the trial, diet 3 had similar (p > 0.05) percentage weight gain (106.38 ? 4.41%), specific growth rate (1.29 ? 0.04%/day) and feed conversion ratio (2.38 ? 0.08) relative to the control group. Intestinal digestive enzyme activities, hepatic and muscle transaminases and proximate body composition of L. rohita fingerlings were not significantly (p > 0.05) influenced by the dietary treatment. Superoxide dismutase activity of the group reared on diets 3 and 4 was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than that of diet 1. Based on the second-order polynomial regression analysis on the expression of IGF-I and IGF-BPI, it was concluded that as much as 166.5 g/kg DORB can be replaced by SCLM for optimal growth performance, in the diets of L. rohita fingerlings

Short communication: Length-frequency distribution, length-weight relationship and condition factor of two grey mullets from Lagos Lagoon

There is a growing interest in examining of economically important fish species with excellent mariculture potentials in lagoons of coastal states. Members of the family Mugilidae, which are permanent residents in Lagos Lagoon form a mainstay of fish protein source and are potential candidates for such investigations. Length-frequency distribution, length-weight relationship, condition factor and molecular characteristics of two grey mullets, Mugil cephalus and Liza falcipinniswere investigated in Lagos Lagoon. A total of 52 samples (26 specimens of each species) of the fish were collected from the Lagos Lagoon. The standard length ranged from 10.0 – 19.2 cm and 12.0 – 18.2 cm for M. cephalus and L. falcipinnis respectively, with corresponding weights of 13.90 – 105.00 g and 36.00-129.00 g respectively. The growth pattern of the species showed negative allometric, b = 0.32 and 0.65 respectively. The condition factors were 1.81 and 2.16 respectively and this meant both species were in good condition