Effect of stocking density on growth and survival of Fenneropenaeus merguiensis (de man, 1888) post larvae

Abstract

The present study evaluated the effect of stocking density on growth and survival of post larvae of Fenneropenaeus merguiensis ,commonly known as banana shrimp. PL was stocked at four different densities that is, 10, 20, 30 and 40 per square metres and reared for a period of 60 days. Water quality and growth performance parameters of different treatments were compared during the experiment. A significant (p less than 0.05) decrease in dissolved oxygen concentration relative with the higher stocking density was observed. Though some of the parameters showed significant (p less than 0.05) difference among the treatments, the water quality remained within safe level, throughout the experiment. Increase in stocking density led to significant reduction (p less than 0.05) in BWG and SGR of PL. The highest value of FCR was in T4 and lowest in T1. Stocking density also showed an inverse relationship with survival percentage of shrimp. Results of the present study revealed that high stocking density can seriously impair the growth of post larvae of F. merguiensis.