Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

Chapter Twelve
Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

1.Introduction:
• Good nutrition in animal production systems is essential to economically
produce a healthy, high quality product. In fish farming, nutrition is
critical because feed represents 40-50% of the production costs.
• Fish nutrition has advanced dramatically in recent years with the
development of new, balanced commercial diets that promote optimal
fish growth and health. The development of new species-specific diet
formulations supports the aquaculture (fish farming) industry as it
expands to satisfy increasing demand for affordable, safe, and high-
quality fish and seafood products.
2. Levels of fish culture:
2-1. Production of fish exclusively from natural aquatic foods:
• Some fish obtain their food exclusively from plankton. These fish are
usually continuous grazers and have mechanisms for filtering and
concentrating the suspended animal and plant organisms from the water.
• An example is the silver carp. Others, such as some of the tilapias, have
the ability to feed on plankton, but also feed on bottom materials. The
common carp is an efficient bottom feeder. Some fishes, such as grass
carp, have herbivorous appetites and consume large quantities of higher
aquatic plants. Such fishes have been cultured without artificial feeds.
2-2. Supplementing natural foods with prepared feed:
• This level of fish farming essentially involves taking full advantage of
natural aquatic productivity and using prepared feeds as a supplement to
increase yield further.
• Usually with species that will accept supplemental feeds, the additional
yield of fish resulting from the additional feeding is profitable.
• For example, the yield of common carp in fertilized ponds is 390
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

Kg/hectare; the addition of grain or grain byproducts increases yields to

1,530 kg/hectare and high quality supplemental fish feeds further
improve yields to 3000 kg/hectare. With channel catfish, yields of 370
kg/hectare are obtained from fertilized ponds. With supplements of
high-protein feed, yields of 5,000 kg/hectare are obtained in static ponds.
2-3. Intensive culture of fish under artificial conditions:
• With this system, maximum yield per unit of space and effort is a
primary concern and highly concentrated, nutritionally complete feeds
are justified. Examples of this type of production are rainbow trout
cultured in spring-fed raceways and Atlantic salmon growth in net pens
in the sea. Production costs are high and nutritionally complete feeds
must be fed.

Figure . The role of natural food organisms and artificial feeds in the nutrition of fish
and shrimp within extensive, semi-intensive, and intensive pond culture systems.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

3- Prepared (artificial) fish diets:

• Prepared or artificial diets may be either complete or supplemental.
Complete diets supply all the ingredients (protein, carbohydrates, fats,
vitamins, and minerals) necessary for the optimal growth and health of
the fish.
• Most fish farmers use complete diets, those containing all the required
protein (18-50%), lipid (10-25%), carbohydrate (15-20%), ash (< 8.5%),
phosphorus (< 1.5%), water (< 10%), and trace amounts of vitamins, and
minerals.
• When fish are reared in high density indoor systems or confined in cages
and cannot forage freely on natural feeds, they must be provided a
complete diet.
• In contrast, supplemental (incomplete, partial) diets are intended only to
help support the natural food (insects, algae, small fish) normally
available to fish in ponds or outdoor raceways. Supplemental diets do
not contain a full complement of vitamins or minerals, but are used to
help fortify the naturally available diet with extra protein, carbohydrate
and/or lipid.
• Fish, especially when reared in high densities, require a high-quality,
nutritionally complete, balanced diet to grow rapidly and remain healthy.
4- Nutrient Requirements For Fish:
4-1. Energy:
• Fish have lower dietary energy requirements because they do not have to
maintain a constant body temperature, they use less energy in protein
waste excretion (about 85% of nitrogenous protein wastes of fish are
excreted through the gills as ammonia rather than through the kidneys as
uric acid in chickens), and fish require less energy than land animals to
maintain position in space because of their neutral buoyancy in water.
• Metabolic energy is available to fish from proteins, lipids and
carbohydrates. The amount of digestible energy (DE) required by fish is

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

affected by species, life stage, sex, activity level, temperature, various

water quality and other environmental factors.
• For energy needs cultured fish use proteins and lipids primarily and
carbohydrates secondarily while land animals use carbohydrates and
lipids primarily and proteins secondarily. Warm-water fish can digest
about 85% of gross energy in fish meal and other animal feedstuffs,
which consist mainly of proteins and lipids, and about 70% of gross
energy in soybean meal and other oilseed meals, which come partially
from crude fiber (carbohydrates).
• The gross energy, is approximately only 26 and 45% digested by channel
catfish and Nile tilapia, respectively. Cooking corn increases its
digestibility by channel catfish and tilapia to about 58% and 72%,
TBC
respectively.
• Carbohydrate digestibility is higher in extruded feed than in compressed
feed, because more heat and moisture are used in the extruding process.
• Meeting optimum energy requirements is important because:
o If a diet is deficient in energy relative to protein, a proportionate
amount of dietary protein will be used for energy rather than
building tissue, because energy needs for body maintenance and
physical activity must be satisfied before energy and remaining
protein are available for growth;
o Conversely, if a diet contains excess energy the fish may become
satiated (hunger is satisfied) before they consume necessary
amounts of protein, vitamins and other nutrients for optimum
growth and good health. Hunger is satisfied when a fish has
consumed the calories it wants regardless of the amount of other
nutrients it has consumed. Excess energy relative to protein may
cause deposition of large amounts of visceral and body fat.
• Ratios of dietary digestible energy to crude protein for optimum fish
growth vary somewhat between species and size (weight) among other
factors already mentioned. At feed protein levels of about 30 to 36%,
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

energy requirements of 8 to 9 kcal DE/g of protein (34 -38 kJ DE/g) that

means 2,400 to 3,400 kcal/kg (= 10-14 MJ/kg) of feed are recommended
for feeds of channel catfish, common carp and Nile tilapia for optimum
growth from about 25 to 500 g..
stop here Table ( 63): Protein and digestible energy (DE) requirements by various
sizes of channel catfish for maximum protein synthesis.
Protein DE DE/protein ratio
Fish size (g/100 g fish/day) (Kcal/100 g (Kcal/g)
(g) fish/day)
3 1.46 16.80 10.2
10 1.11 11.40 10.3
56 0.79 9.0 11.4
198 0.52 6.1 11.7
266 0.43 5.0 11.6
4-2. Lipids:
• Lipids (fats) are high-energy nutrients that can be utilized to partially
spare (substitute for) protein in aquaculture feeds. Lipids supply about
twice the energy as proteins and carbohydrates. Lipids typically
comprise about 15% of fish diets, supply essential fatty acids (EFA) and
serve as transporters for fat-soluble vitamins.
• A recent trend in fish feeds is to use higher levels of lipids in the diet.
Although increasing dietary lipids can help reduce the high costs of diets
by partially sparing protein in the feed, problems such as excessive fat
deposition in the liver can decrease the health and market quality of fish.
• Marine fish typically require n-3 HUFA for optimal growth and health,
usually in quantities ranging from 0.5-2.0% of dry diet.
• Freshwater fish do not require the long chain HUFA, but often require an
18 carbon n-3 fatty acid, linolenic acid (18:3-n-3), in quantities ranging
from 0.5 to 1.5% of dry diet. This fatty acid cannot be produced by
freshwater fish and must be supplied in the diet.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

4-3. Protein and Amino Acids:

• Proteins compose approximately 70% dry weight of the organic material
in fish tissue; therefore, protein content is one of the most important
nutritional compounds of fish feeds.
• Usually, fish growth will be directly proportional to the protein level of
its feed if the level is within the range of approximately 20 to 40% crude
protein. Optimum dietary protein levels vary with fish species, stage of
life, water temperature, food consumption, daily feed allowance, feeding
frequency, quality of protein (amino acid composition), and quantity of
non-protein energy.
• Fish do not have a true protein requirement but require a balanced
combination of the 20 major essential and nonessential amino acids that
make up proteins. Fish utilize dietary proteins by digesting them into
free amino acids, which are absorbed into the blood and distributed to
tissues throughout the body where they are then reconstituted into new
specific proteins of the fish tissues.
• Protein in fish tissues is formed from all 20 major amino acids. Fish can
synthesize some of these amino acids in their body, but others cannot be
synthesized and must be consumed. The 10 amino acids that fish cannot
synthesize are the "essential amino acids" that must be provided in
proper amounts in their diet. The essential amino acids required by
channel catfish, common carp, and Nile tilapia are the same required for
all fish and animals. Although qualitatively they are the same or similar,
quantitatively they are different.
• If any of the 10 "nonessential" amino acids are not consumed as such in
the diet, fish can synthesize these in required quantities from other amino
acids. It is not clear how effectively cultured fishes can utilize synthetic
(crystalline) amino acids, such as free lysine and methionine, in their
diets.
• Proteins are present in all animals and plants in varying amounts and
compositions of amino acids. However, each protein varies in its
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

digestibility and content of available amino acids to fish. The preferred

sources of feedstuffs for providing protein for fish feeds are fish meal
and soybean meal, because these products are high in percent crude
protein, contain high levels of all essential amino acids and are
universally available in high quantities at reasonable price.
4-4. Vitamins:
• Vitamins are organic compounds required in trace amounts and are
essential for normal fish growth, reproduction and general health. Fish
cannot synthesize vitamins and must consume them in their diet. Fish
raised in cages and all intensive culture systems must be fed nutritionally
complete feeds containing vitamin supplements.
• Minimum requirements for most of the 15 essential vitamins have been
established for channel catfish, common carp and Nile tilapia. Although
determined generally for fingerling fish, the requirements are probably
sufficient for larger fish as well. The vitamin levels recommended for
pelleted feeds for caged fish are approximately 25% to 100% above
minimum levels to prevent deficiency signs.
• The recommendations account for vitamin losses during feed processing
and normal deterioration for up to three months in proper storage.
• Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is usually the first limiting vitamin in the diet
of caged fish, because most commercial feed ingredients do not contain
the vitamin and it is relatively unstable in processing and storage. It is a
critical nutrient in fish feeds because of its function in the immune
system, in detoxifying toxic chemicals and its many physiological
functions as a metabolic reducing agent.
• Vitamins are relatively unstable and a matter of major concern in feed
processing, handling and storage. Some vitamins (e.g. vitamins C, A,
and D3) are highly vulnerable to destruction during processing and
storage while others (e.g. vitamins E and the B-complex) are not. Causes
of vitamin destruction include:

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

• Heat and moisture, especially during feed processing (up to 60%

of ascorbic acid may be destroyed during normal extrusion
processing).
• Natural oxidation, which destroys sensitive vitamins of foods,
feed ingredients (before processing), vitamin premixes and
processed feeds. Natural oxidation is accelerated by heat,
moisture, and the presence of oxidants such as rancid fats and
metals.
• Anti-metabolites in the feeds and ingredients.
• Leaching of vitamins from the feed into the water prior to fish
consumption.
4-5. Minerals:
• Fish require up to 22 different minerals for tissue formation, metabolic
processes and to maintain osmotic balance between their internal fluids
and their water environment. Some minerals are essential in their diet.
Some dissolved minerals, such as calcium, can be exchanged between
the body fluids and the surrounding water across the gill membranes.
• Dietary mineral deficiencies in cultured fish have not been as well
established as with vitamins. Known and suspected deficiencies include
reduced growth rate, poor appetite and skeleton deformities.
• The most common deficiencies are associated with calcium and
phosphorus, the two most required and most studied minerals. Most
freshwater fish can absorb sufficient calcium from the water unless
calcium carbonate content of the water is below 5 mg/l. Therefore,
supplemental calcium is not required in mineral premixes of fish feeds.
However, supplemental phosphorus is required in the feed, because the
concentration of dissolved phosphorus in most fresh waters is too low to
be a significant source for fish.
• Bound phosphorus in plant ingredients is only partially available to fish.
Phosphorus requirements of fish vary only slightly among species and
are reported as available phosphorus in the diet. The available
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

phosphorus requirements for channel catfish, common carp and Nile

tilapia are 0.45, 0.45 and 0.60%, respectively. Some required minerals,
such as sodium and potassium, are present in sufficient amounts in feed
ingredients and do not need to be added as supplements. Mineral
deficiency signs in fish are similar to some of the other nutrient
deficiencies and are essentially impossible to isolate.
5- Fish feed types:
• Commercial fish diets are manufactured as either extruded (floating or
buoyant) or pressure-pelleted (sinking) feeds. Both floating or sinking
feed can produce satisfactory growth, but some fish species prefer
floating, others sinking. Shrimp, for example, will not accept a floating
feed, but most fish species can be trained to accept a floating pellet.
5.1.Floating pellets:
• Floating Pellets are more expensive to buy and more expensive for feed
millers to manufacture. Floating pellets (also known as expanded or
extruded pellets) require to go through an extrusion process during
processing. This section of a feed mill is most of the time costly to set-up
and run than a standard pelleting section.
• Floating on the surface of the water (usually maintaining integrity in the
water for several hours), the fish must come up to the surface to eat. This
enables you to observe your fish each day, which helps in monitoring
their health and vigor. Also you can adjust the amount of feed per day
and avoid wasted feed and pond pollution problems.
5.2.Sinking pellet:
• Sinking feed will have water stability of up to an hour, and will
gradually sink and settle on the bottom if uneaten. Since ingredients are
pressed togetherm it makes it impossible for the fish to selectively eat
the ingedients they want.
• Sinking pellets are sometimes used in winter when the fish do not
regularly surface. Also by pelleting some feeds it can be avoided to harm
some ingredients which do not like the extrusion process>
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

6.Feeding Response by Fish:

❖ It is extremely important to feed fish in ponds by response, because: It
enables the farmer to feed the fish based on their actual needs at each
meal. Therefore, the likelihood of overfeeding or underfeeding is
reduced to a minimum.
❖ It enables the farmer visually assess the number of fish in the pond, and
their growth on a daily basis without actually having to physically handle
the fish.
❖ The fishes feeding response, is therefore, the first indicator of the fishes
well being. The fish’s feeding response depends on the:
❖ Suitability of the Feed: The feed’s appearance, smell, texture/feel and
taste also influence the fish’s appetite. The more palatable the feed is, the
better the feed response should be.
❖ Culture (Water) Environment: The most important water quality
parameters that affect feeding response in ponds are water temperature
and dissolved oxygen. The warmer the water and more dissolved oxygen
it has, the more active fish will be and the better their feed consumption
and FCR.
❖ Other Stressors: Such as pollutants in water, other water quality
variables (notably of ammonia and pH), handling and social interactions
also affect the fish’s appetite. When fish are stressed, their appetite drops
quickly.
6-1. Criteria for Judging Feeding Response:
❖ The following is a description of the criteria used to judge the fishes
feeding response:
❖ Excellent: Fish are very active and come to feed immediately. The feed
administered is all consumed by the fish within 5 to at most 10 minutes
of feeding.
❖ Good: Fish are less active and come to feed over a longer duration. Feed
gets consumed in about 15 to 20 minutes.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

❖ Fair; Fish are sluggish but do consume about three quarters of the feed.
However, they do so in over more than 30 minutes.
❖ Poor: When feed is applied, fish do not come to feed. More than three
quarters of the feed administered is left over.

7.Tilapia Nutrition:
7.1. Nutrient Requirements for Tilapia:
7.1.1.Protein requirements:
• Data on protein requirements for fish from 1 to 50 g in size have ranged
from 30 to 50%, varying with protein quality, dietary energy level,
feeding rate, natural food, and fish size.
• The dietary protein-to-energy ratio required for maximum growth
decreases with increasing size of tilapias. Digestible energy/protein
(DE/P) ratio of 8.2 to 9.4 kilocalorie/ gram (kcal/g).
Table ( 64 ):. Typical protein requirements for tilapia.
# Tilapia fish size Protein requirement%
1 First feeding fry 45 – 50
2 0.02 – 2.0 g 40
3 2 – 35 g 35
4 35 g – harvest 30 – 32

Table ( 65 ): Essential Amino Acids in experimental tilapia diets.

Essential amino acids g/kg diet %of protein
Arginine 15 7.5
Histidine 5 2.3
Isoleucine 9 4.3
Leucine 15 7.0
Lysine 16 5.0
Methionine 5 1.7
Phenylalanine 15 4.5
Tryptophane 2 1.0

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

7.1.2. Lipid requirements:

• The minimum requirement of dietary lipids in tilapia diets is 5 percent
but improved growth and protein utilization efficiency has been reported
for diets with 10-15 percent lipids (table ).
• Both n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have been shown
to be essential for maximal growth of hybrid tilapia (O. niloticus x O.
aureus).
• For Nile tilapia the quantitative requirement for n-6 PUFA is around 0.5-
1.0 percent (table ).
• Unlike marine fish species, tilapia appear not to have a requirement for
n-3 highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFAs) such as EPA (20:5n-3) and
DHA (22:6n-3) and its n-3 fatty acid requirement can be met with
linolenic acid (18:3n-3
Table ( 66 ): Lipids and carbohydrates requirements for tilapia diets.
Nutrients Requirements
Crude lipids 10 – 15%
EFA (18:2n-6) 0.5 – 1.0%
EFA (20:42n-6) 1.0
CHO Max. 40.0%
Crude fiber max. 8 – 10%
7.1.3. Carbohydrate:
• The exact carbohydrate requirements of tilapia species are not known.
Carbohydrates are included in tilapia feeds to provide a cheap source of
energy and for improving pellet binding properties. Tilapia can
efficiently utilize as much as 35-40 percent digestible carbohydrate.
• Carbohydrate utilization by tilapia is affected by a number of factors,
including carbohydrate source, other dietary ingredients, fish species and
size and feeding frequency.
• Complex carbohydrates such as starches are better utilized than
disaccharides and monosaccharides by tilapias. Hybrid tilapia (O.
niloticus x O. aureus) showed the carbohydrate (44 percent) digestibility
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

in the following progression: starch >maltose >sucrose >lactose

>glucose.
• Nile tilapia are capable of utilizing high levels of various carbohydrates
of between 30 to 70 percent of the diet. It has also been demonstrated
that larger hybrid tilapia (O. niloticus x O. aureus) utilized carbohydrates
better than smaller sized fish.
Table ( 67 ):. Vitamin and mineral mix used in tilapia diet. (recommended
amounts before pelletizing)
Vitamins Units Vitamins Units Minerals Units
(mg/kg) (IU/kg) (g/kg)
Thiamine 11 Vit. K 4.4 mg/kg Calcium 3
Folic acid 5 Vit. A 4400 Phosphorus 7
Riboflavin 20 Vit. D 2200 Magnesium 0.5
Vitamin B12 0.01 Vit. E 66 Iron 0.15
Pyridoxine 11 Zinc 0.2
Choline 275 Copper 0.03
Pantothenic 35 Manganese 0.013
acid
Nicotinic acid 88 Selenium 0.0004
Vitamin C 375 Iodine 0.001
7.1.4. Vitamins and minerals:
• Vitamins and minerals are critical to proper nutrition in tilapia and
considerable research has been conducted to determine these
requirements.
• Commercial premixes are available which allow feed makers to purchase
a whole group of micronutrients rather than attempting to determine how
much is available from the productivity of the system and the other
ingredients.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

7.2. Practical Tilapia Feeds:

7.2.1. Tilapia feeding rate and frequency:
• Feeding rates for tilapias are affected by the species, size, energy level in
the diet, water quality, feeding frequency, and availability of natural
foods. As with other fish, feed consumption rate is inversely related to
fish size. Tilapias, like many other cultured fish species, benefit from
multiple daily feedings. Small fish should be fed more often than larger
fish. The feeding frequency is decreased as the fish increase in size.
Table ( 68 ): Feeding rates and frequencies for various sizes of Nile tilapias
for maximum growth.
Size Daily feeding (% of fish Time fed daily
weight)
2 days old to 1 g size 30 -10 8
1–5g 10 – 6 6
5 – 20 g 6–4 4
20 -100 g 4–3 3 or 4
➢ 100g 3 3
7.2.2. Tilapia commercial diets:
• Practical diets for tilapia generally contain between 25 and 32% crude
protein. In static water with abundant plankton, the amount of crude
protein in the feed can be further reduced due to the availability of
natural foods as a supplement. These natural foods can make an
important contribution of protein, vitamins and minerals, to cultured
tilapia. On a dry weight basis plankton is very nutritious for tilapia.
• The importance of micronutrient supplementation in pond feeds for
tilapias is not well known. Due to the extreme variation in the culture
practices used, formulation of practical feeds to supplement the nutrient
contribution of the natural food efficiently is practically impossible. In
intensive cultures, such as raceways or cages, where tilapias rely solely
on the prepared feeds as a source of nutrients, a nutritionally complete
feed containing all essential nutrients is fed.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

• The protein content of cage or raceway feeds is usually 32%; however,

there have been relatively few experiments on the protein allowance for
production feeds for tilapias.
• In re-circulating systems, where the overhead costs of operating the
systems are high and un retained organic and inorganic matter is
objectionable, highly concentrated feeds may be desirable. Some re-
circulating culture operators use 36% protein feeds, with energy
balanced with protein, and claim that the additional growth rate,
compared to that with a 32% protein feed, is economically beneficial.
• Tilapias accept a variety of feeds, in non-pelleted form and in sinking
and floating pellets.

8.Catfish Nutrition:
8.1. Nutrient Requirements for Catfish:
8.1.1. Energy:
• Energy requirements of catfish were largely neglected in the early stages
of catfish feed development, primarily because an imbalance in dietary
energy does not appreciably affect the health of the fish. Also, feeds
prepared from feedstuffs typically used in catfish feeds, such as soybean
meal, corn, and fish meal, are unlikely to be deficient or excessive in
energy when protein requirement is met.
• Based on available information, it appears that a digestible energy (DE)
level of 8 to 9 kcal/g of protein is adequate for use in catfish feeds. Thus,
a 32% protein feed should contain a digestible energy level of about
2600 to 2800 kcal/kg of diet.
8.1.2. Fats:
• Catfish appear to have the ability to synthesize most of their fatty acids;
thus, nutritionally there may be no "best" level of dietary lipid except
that needed to provide EFA. Generally, weight gain and feed efficiency
are depressed in aquatic species when fed diets containing 15% or more
lipid.
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

• Since lipid is a concentrated source of energy and can spare the more
expensive protein, some lipid should be included in catfish diets.
However, too much dietary lipid may result in excessive fat deposition in
the visceral cavity and tissues that may adversely affect yield, product
quality, and storage of processed products.
• Also, high-lipid feeds are difficult to pellet. If needed, supplemental lipid
can be sprayed on to the finished feed pellet. Lipid levels in commercial
catfish grow out feeds rarely exceed 5 to 6%. About 3 to 4% of the lipid
is inherent in the feed ingredients with the remaining 1 to 2% being
sprayed on to the finished pellets.
8.1.3. Carbohydrates:
• The utilization of carbohydrate by catfish appears to differ depending on
the complexity of the carbohydrate. Starch or dextrin (partially
hydrolyzed starch) is used more efficiently by catfish than are sugars
such as glucose or sucrose.
• A typical commercial catfish feed contains 25% or more soluble
(digestible) carbohydrate. An additional 3 to 6% carbohydrate is
generally present as crude fiber. Fiber is considered to be indigestible by
catfish; thus, it is not desirable in catfish feeds because indigestible
materials may "pollute" the water. However, there is always some fiber
inherent in practical feed ingredients.
8.1.4. Protein:
• Most of the studies on protein requirements of fish have been based on
weight gain and feed efficiency. Data from those studies indicate that the
dietary protein requirement for catfish ranges from about 25 to 50%
(table ).
• Recent studies have indicated that a protein level as low as 16% may be
adequate for grow out of catfish when the fish are fed full feed during
the growing season.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

TABLE ( 69 ): RECOMMENDED DIETARY PROTEIN LEVELS FOR

VARIOUS SIZES OF CATFISH.
Fish weight Dietary requirement
g/fish lb/1,000 fish %
0.02- 0.25 0.04- 0.55 52
0.25- 1.5 0.55- 3.3 48
1.5 - 5.0 3.3 -11.0 44
5.0 -20.0 11.0 -44.0 40
20.0 -27.0 44.0 -60.0 35
27 and up 60 and up 26-32
8.1.5. Vitamin and minerals:
• Catfish feeds are generally supplemented with a vitamin premix that
contains all essential vitamins in sufficient quantities to meet
requirements and to compensate for losses due to feed processing and
storage.
• Vitamin deficiencies in the diet can reduce the resistance of young
channel catfish to disease-causing bacteria. Studies have demonstrated
that deficiencies of vitamin C, vitamin E, and folic acid increased
mortality and impaired various specific and nonspecific immune
responses in catfish.
• Phosphorus supplements are added in catfish feeds to provide the 0.3-
0.4% biologically available phosphorus that is required.

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

Table ( 70 ): Vitamin deficiency signs and minimum dietary levels required to

prevent signs of deficiency in catfish.
Vitamin Deficiency signs Units Requirement
Fat soluble Exophthalmia, edema, acities IU 450-900
D Low bone ash IU 110-220
E Skin depigmentation, exudative diathesis, IU 23
muscle dystrophy, erythrocyte hemolysis,
splenic and pancreatic hemosiderosis
K Skin hemorrhage, prolonged clotting time ppm R
Thiamin Dark skin color, neurological disorders ppm 1.0
Riboflavin Short-body dwarfism ppm 9.0
Pyridoxine Greenish blue coloration, tetany, nervous ppm 3.0
disorders
Pantothenic Clubbed gills, anemia, eroded skin, lower ppm 15
acid jaw, fins, and barbells
Niacin Anemia, lesions of skin and fins, ppm 14
exophthalmia
Biotin Anemia, skin depigmentation, reduced ppm R
liver pyruvate carboxylase activity
Folic acid Reduced hematocrit ppm 1.5
B12 Reduced hematocrit ppm R
Choline Hemorrhagic kidney and intestine, fatty ppm 400
liver
Inositol None demonstrated ppm NR
Ascorbic acid Reduced hematocrit, scoliosis, lordosis, ppm 60
increased susceptibility to bacterial
infections, reduced bone collagen
formation, internal and external
hemorrhage

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

Table ( 71 ): Mineral deficiency signs and minimum dietary levels required

to prevent deficiency signs in catfish.
Mineral Deficiency Signs Requirements
Macrominerals
Calcium Reduced bone ash <0.1%, 0.45%
Phosphorusc Reduced bone mineralization 0.40%
Magnesium Muscle flaccidity, sluggishness, reduced bone, 0.04%
serum, and whole body magnesium
Sodium ND ND
Potassiumd ND 0.26%
Chloride ND ND
Sulfur ND ND
Microminerals
Cobalt ND ND
Iodine ND ND
e
Zinc Reduced serum zinc and serum alkaline phosphatase 20 ppm
activity, reduced bone zinc and calcium
concentrations
Selenium Reduced liver and plasma selenium-dependent 0.25 ppm
glutathione peroxidase activities
Manganese None 2.4 ppm
Iron Reduced hemoglobin, hematocrit, erythrocyte count, 20 ppm
reduced serum iron and transferrin saturation levels
Copper Reduced hepatic copper-zinc superoxide dismutase, 4.8 ppm
reduced heart cytochrome oxidase activities
8.2. Practical catfish feeding:
8.2.1. Catfish feeding during warm weather:
8.2.1.1.Fry:
• Newly hatched catfish fry, which are only about 1/4inch in total length,
are usually held in indoor troughs and tanks for no more than 10 days
before being released into outdoor nursery ponds. Initially, catfish fry
use their yolk sac as an energy and nutrient source.
• Once the yolk sac is absorbed (approximately 3–5 days after hatching),

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

fry begin to seek food and should be fed frequently. In the hatchery, fry
should be fed finely ground meal- or flour-type feeds containing 45–
50% protein supplied primarily from fish meal.
• Usually, most producers feed catfish fry in the hatchery with trout starter
feeds because of their high quality and ready availability.
• Hatchery-held fry should be fed at a daily rate equal to about 25% body
weight divided into eight to 10 equal feedings. Automatic feed
dispensers can also be used to deliver the amount of feed prescribed
daily at relatively short time intervals.
8.2.1.2.Fingerlings:
• Initially, small fingerlings (1–2 inches) should be fed once or twice daily
to satiation using a crumbled feed or small floating pellets (1/8 inch
diameter) containing 35% protein, a part of which should be supplied by fish
meal, meat and bone/blood meal, or a mixture of the two protein sources.
• Some catfish producers feed fingerlings the same feed they feed during
food fish grow out. Fingerlings consume large feed pellets by nibbling
on the feed after it begins to soften and break up in the water.
• Fingerlings appear to grow well using this feeding strategy, but nutrient
losses, especially micronutrients, are likely due to leaching of nutrients
because of the extended time the pellet is in contact with the water.
8.2.1.3.Food – fish:
• Catfish grown for food are usually stocked as advanced fingerlings of
about 5–6 inches in length(about 40–60 pounds per 1,000 fish).
• They are generally fed a floating feed of approximately 5/32–3/16inch in
diameter containing 28–32% protein. It has generally been recommended to
start with a 32%-protein feed in early spring, when temperature is
relatively low and fish are feeding with less vigor. As the temperature
increases and the fish are feeding vigorously, change to a 28%-protein
feed and feed to satiation.
• Starting with the 32%-protein feed appears to be unnecessary because
there is strong evidence that the 28%-protein feed can be used
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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

throughout the grow out phase without detrimental effects.

• Because management practices vary greatly throughout the catfish
industry, the choice of which feed to use is up to the individual catfish
producer.
Table ( 72 ): Feeding rate of catfish grown from advanced fingerlings to
marketable size.
Fish size (Lb/1000 fish) Feeding rate (% body weight)
110 2.1
136 3.4
180 2.9
244 3.2
316 2.7
388 2.4
513 1.8
628 2.0
739 1.5
841 1.3
1019 1.1
8.2.1.4. Brood Fish:
• Catfish brood stock is usually fed the same feed used for food-fish grow
out. Some catfish producers prefer using sinking feeds because brood
fish are often hesitant to feed at the surface.
• However, because brooders generally feed slowly, sinking pellets may
disintegrate before they can be consumed.
• It is recommended that catfish brooders be fed a typical 28%- or 32%-
protein feed once daily. The feeding rate should be about 0.5–1% fish
body weight.
8.2.2. Catfish winter feeding
• Water temperature dramatically influences the feeding activity of catfish.
At temperatures below 21ºC,feeding activity can be inconsistent and feed
intake is greatly diminished when compared with summer time feeding

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 Nutrition and Feeding of Fish

activity. However, a winter feeding program appears to be beneficial to

prevent weight loss and maintain fish health.
• Research has shown that significant increases in weight gain can be
obtained in fish that were fed during the winter as compared with fish
that were not fed during these months.
• The type of feed that should be fed during the winter has not been
precisely defined. Atypical grow out floating feed containing 28% or
32% protein is sufficient. A 25%-protein, slow-sinking feed is also
available and is preferred by some producers. Either of these feeds will
provide sufficient nutrition for overwintering catfish.
Table (73): Winter feeding schedule for fingerlings, food and brood catfish.
Temp. Fingerlings Food fish Brood
o
( C) %BW Frequency %BW Frequency %BW Frequency
˃10 -- Do not -- Do not -- Do not
feed feed feed
10-16 0.5 – 1 -2 times 0.25 – Once a 0.25 – Once a
1.0 per week 0.5 week 0.5 week
16-21 1.0 – Daily or 0.5 – Every 0.5 – 1.0 2–3
2.5 every 1.0 other day times per
other day week

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