Carbohydrate-to-lipid ratios in diets for Tilapia zillii fingerlings

• Published in: Aquaculture Vol. 73; no. 1; pp. 157 - 163
• Main Authors: El-Sayed, Abdel-Fattah M., Garling, Donald L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.10.1988; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Aquaculture; Biological and medical sciences; Freshwater; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Tilapia zillii; Freshwater environment; Vertebrata; Nutrition; Diet; Growth; Pisces; Pisciculture; Lipids; Carbohydrate
• ISSN: 0044-8486; 1873-5622
• DOI: 10.1016/0044-8486(88)90050-6

Four isonitrogenous (30% crude protein), isocaloric (300 kcal ME/100 g), semipurified diets with variable levels of carbohydrates (dextrin) and lipids (cod liver oil-soybean oil mixture) were formulated to determine the ability of Tilapia zillii fingerlings to utilize each as an energy source. The diets were fed to triplicate groups of fish at a daily rate of 3% of their body weights for 6 weeks. No significant differences were observed in the growth and feed conversion of T. zillii fed diets with carbohydrate-to-lipid (CHO:L) ratios ranging from 8.76 to 0.81. A diet containing a CHO:L ratio of 24.11 produced significantly retarded performance, presumably caused by an essential fatty acid deficiency in the diet. These results indicate that T. zillii can efficiently utilize carbohydrates and lipids as energy sources. They can be substituted for one another at a rate of 2.25:1 commensurate with the CHO:L physiological fuel values.