Effect of dietary Centrosema pubescens leaf meal on growth and reproductive traits of Archachatina marginata snails

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the effect on growth and reproductive performance of supplementing dried Centrosema pubescens leaf meal to Archachatina marginata snails. A total of 80 growing, medium-sized A. marginata snails were used. Twenty snails were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental diets as T1, T2, T3, and T4 containing 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% dietary inclusion levels of dried C. pubescens leaves, respectively. Each diet constituted a treatment and each treatment was replicated four times with five snails per replicate. Results showed that snails under T4 had the highest (P < .05) final body weight, average weight gain, and daily weight gain (346.89, 47.60, and 0.85 g, respectively) with the best feed conversion to meat rate of 2.12. The weekly feed intake and average body weight gain revealed the superiority of dietary T4 in supporting the growth of snails more efficiently than other dietary treatments (T1, T2, and T3) used in this study. The number of eggs laid, percentage fertility, and hatchability were highest (P < .05) for snails fed dietary T4 with the least (P < .05) embryo mortality of 2.22%. Archachatina marginata snails fed 15% dietary inclusion of dried C. pubescens leaves (T4) were the best in growth and reproductive performance.

Keywords

• Experimental diets
• eggs
• feed conversion
• percentage fertility
• embryo mortality