Effect of different levels of dietary Betaine on growth performance, food efficiency and survival rate of pike perch (Sander lucioperca) fingerlings

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Abstract

 A
6-week feeding experiments were carried out to determine the effects of different
levels of dietary betaine on growth performance, food efficiency and survival
rate of pike perch which has a critical period during transition feeding. Fingerlings
of pike perch were fed with live food (treatment A), without betaine added to
biomar (treatment B), 1% betaine added to biomar (treatment C) and 2% betaine
added to biomar (treatment D) in 1000 l concreted tanks. 200 fingerlings (1.50
g, mean weight) were stocked in each tank and fed up to 7 meals per day. Higher
increment in body weight (4.99 ± 0.73 g), specific growth
rate (3.90 ± 0.06) and food efficiency (104.42 ± 4.27) were obtained with
treatment D (2% betaine added to biomar). This treatment also showed
significant (P < 0.05) decrease in food conversion ratio (0.93 ± 0.04) in comparison with
other treatments. Highest survival rate was observed in treatment B (biomar
without betaine) with a 34.5 % rate and greatest cannibalism (1.03 ± 0.01) was found in
treatment D, respectively. It was concluded that betaine could increase the
palatability and acceptability of food and could be suitable to weaning the
pike perch fingerlings to artificial diet.  

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