Co-Culture of Red Seaweed (Gracilaria tenuistipitata) and Black Tiger Shrimp (Penaeus monodon) with Different Feeding Rations

Abstract

The study was performed to assess the effects of different feeding rations on growth and feed efficiency of the black tiger shrimp (Peneaus monodon) co-cultured with red seaweed (Gracilaria tenuistipitata) in tanks. Shrimp was mono-cultured and fed commercial feed (CF) to satiation considered as a control and the five other treatments, shrimps were co-cultured with red seaweed (1 kg mˉ³) and received CF at 100%, 75%, 50% and 25% and 0% feed ration of the control. Juvenile shrimps with mean initial weight of 0.46-0.51 g were run in triplicate and stocked at a density of 100 ind. mˉ³, and at salinity of 15 ppt. After 60 days of culture, water quality parameters in terms of nitrogen compounds (TAN, NO₂-and PO₄³ˉ) in co-culture tanks were significantly (pmoisture, protein and ash were similar among treatments except lipid content was significantly lower and red coloration of shrimp after boiling was markedly darker in co-culture than those in the control. These results indicated that co-culture of P. monodon and G. tenuistipitata with reduction of feeding ration up to 50% satiation resulted in improvement of growth, feed cost, and shrimp color as well as maintain better water quality in the culture tanks.