TITLE:
Growth Rate and Chemical Muscle Composition of Oreochromis niloticus Fish Cultured in Drainage Water and Fed Antioxidant Supplemented Diet
AUTHORS:
Khalid H. Zaghloul, Samah A. Abdel-Salam, Safaa S. Aljilaney, Heba A. El-Dash
KEYWORDS:
Drainage Water, Oreochromis niloticus, Vitamin C, Fennel, Growth Indices and Meat Quality
JOURNAL NAME:
Natural Resources,
Vol.14 No.9,
September
20,
2023
ABSTRACT: Irrigation of fish farms with agricultural drainage water may affect cultured fish
species. So, the present study utilizes antioxidants supplemented diet to overcome deterioration of drainage water and
its negative effect on fish. The studied groups are fish cultured in
dechlorinated tap water as control group or drainage water and fed commercial
basal diet. While, the other studied groups represented by Oreochromis
niloticus fish cultured in drainage water and fed either commercial diet
supplemented with vitamin C (5 g/kg diet) or fennel (5 g/kg diet) for 12 weeks.
Results of the water physico-chemical parameters of all studied treatments
revealed deterioration of the drainage water with a decrease in dissolved
oxygen and an increase in pH, total hardness, total alkalinity, salinity,
ammonia, nitrite and heavy metals (Cu, Pb and Cd) with significant differences
(P ≤ 0.01) in comparison to that of the control dechlorinated tap water group.
Data clarified also that Oreochromis niloticus cultured in drainage water
showed a decrease in growth rate accompanied by deterioration of fish meat
quality. However, fish reared in the same drainage water for the same exposure period and fed vitamin C or fennel supplemented
basal diet (5 g/kg diet) recorded values of the studied parameters more or less
similar to that of control group fish. Data of the present study, empowered
aquaculturist to supplement fish rations with fennel or vitamin C as
antioxidants to improve fish growth rate, meat quality as well as protect fish
against heavy metals toxicity that could threat Human Being.