NIGHT FEEDING REGIME IMPROVES WATER QUALITY, GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND FEEDING BEHAVIOUR OF EUROPEAN EELS, Anguilla anguilla

Abstract

This study was aimed to explore differences between day and night feeding of farmed European eels (Anguilla anguilla) on: (1) the growth and feeding behaviour of eels; and (2) the subsequent impact on the quality of the culture water. A 30 day field experiment was conducted in which 40 European eels (186.4 ± 9.26 g) were arbitrarily allocated into two replicate concrete ponds (200 x 100 x 125cm) that were divided into two treatment groups, one receiving feed by day (DF) and the other receiving feed at night (NF). Results revealed a significant improvement in eel's growth performance (larger final weight and faster growth) of the fish that were fed by night (NF). Moreover, feeding behaviour was also improved in the NF group with a significantly shorter latency to start feeding and shorter feeding duration. As a consequence of improved feeding behaviour, more favourable water quality conditions (higher dissolved oxygen concentrations and lower ammonia concentrations) were observed in the NF group. In conclusion, feeding eels by night could considerably enhance the culturing of eels by promoting enhanced growth and feeding behavior, and simultaneously improving water quality.

Quillaja saponaria and/or linseed oil improved growth performance, water quality, welfare profile and immune‐oxidative status of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus fingerlings

“…Latency to start feeding was recorded and defined as the time elapsed between feed supply in the aquarium water and the first fish that started eating in seconds. Additionally, feeding duration was recorded and defined as the time in seconds elapsed between fish started eating the feed until the feed consumption ended (Abdel‐Hay et al, 2019; Mohamed et al, 2020).…”

Dietary essential oil extract from sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) and bitter lemon (Citrus limon) peels improved Nile tilapia performance and health status

“…Latency to start feeding was reported and described as the time between the provision of feed in the aquarium water and the first fish beginning to eat in seconds. Additionally, feeding duration was also recorded and described as the time in seconds that elapsed between fish start eating the feed until the end of feed consumption (Abdel‐Hay et al., 2019).…”

Effect of water temperature, feeding frequency, and protein percent in the diet on water quality, growth and behavior of Nile tilapiaOreochromis niloticus(Linnaeus, 1758)

“…Latency to start feeding was recorded and defined as the time in seconds elapsed between the provision of feed on the aquarium water and the first fish starting to eat. Feeding duration was also recorded and described as the time in minutes elapsed between the first fish starting to eat until the last fish ending feed consumption (Abdel‐Hay et al., 2019; Mohamed et al., 2020).…”