The effect of water renewal on growth of Clarias gariepinus fingerlings

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of different water change frequency on the growth of African catfish Clarias gariepinus. Fingerlings with initial mean weights of 7.02 ± 0.05g were stocked (50 fish each) in fifteen concrete tanks (2×2×2m) and were conditioned under five different treatments of water renewal, namely: TRT1 (no water change), TRT2 (water renewed daily), TRT3 (water renewed after four days), TRT4 (water renewed after eight days) and TRT5 (water renewed after fourteen days). After 56 days of feeding, results revealed best growth performance of fingerlings in tanks with water renewal frequency of TRT3 and TRT4. Similarly, survival was higher in these frequencies compared to the others; the control treatment, however, had the least performance for all parameters measured. It is therefore recommended that water renewal should be done once between four and eight days to enhance growth of African catfish fingerlings reared in a static system.

Keywords

• water change
• survival
• growth parameter
• water quality