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Effects of Diets with or without Menhaden Fish Meal and Oil on Egg Size, Hatchability, and Fry Size for Rosy Red Fathead Minnow
Author(s) -
Kumaran Sathyanand,
Lochmann Rebecca,
Stone Nathan,
Kachowski Alexander,
Lee YongWoo
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
north american journal of aquaculture
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.432
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1548-8454
pISSN - 1522-2055
DOI - 10.1577/a06-089.1
Subject(s) - minnow , biology , broodstock , menhaden , hatching , pimephales promelas , spawn (biology) , fish meal , zoology , fatty acid , fish oil , food science , fishery , aquaculture , fish <actinopterygii> , biochemistry
Fathead minnow Pimephales promelas represent 20% of total baitfish sales in the USA. Fathead minnow spawn in captivity, but the effects of diet on reproduction are virtually unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the main and interactive effects of dietary protein sources (plant versus animal) and lipid sources (poultry versus fish oil) on fathead minnow broodstock and egg and larval quality. Broodstock of the rosy red variety of fathead minnow were stocked into 24 outdoor pools and fed practical diets containing 10% lipid as poultry fat or menhaden fish oil in combination with animal proteins (poultry and fish meal) or plant proteins. Fish received the diets for 2 months before spawning, which began in late February. Eggs were collected from spawning substrates seven times during the spawning season and egg diameter was determined each time. Hatching percentage and larval length were determined during three of the sampling periods, and fatty acid composition was determined once (May sample). There were no differences in egg diameter, hatching percentage, or larval length due to diet, despite pronounced differences in the fatty acid composition of the eggs from adults fed diets with different lipids. The eggs reflected the fatty acid composition of the dietary lipids and the ability of fathead minnow to elongate and desaturate the fatty acids 18:2(n‐6) and 18:3(n‐3) into the highly unsaturated fatty acids 20:5(n‐3), 22:6(n‐3), and 20:4(n‐6). Adult female fathead minnow fed diets with vegetable proteins also had a higher condition index than those fed diets with animal proteins. These results indicate that poultry fat and vegetable proteins are suitable feed ingredients for broodstock diets of fathead minnow in outdoor systems because no improvements in the quantity or quality of eggs and fry were observed in fish fed diets with animal proteins or marine fish oil.