Livestock Research for Rural Development 24 (7) 2012 Guide for preparation of papers LRRD Newsletter

Citation of this paper

Growth of red tilapia (Oreochomis mossambicus) and black tilapia (Oreochomis niloticus) with common carp (Ciprinus carpio) in monoculture and polyculture by using natural feed in ponds fertilized with biodigester effluent

Nguyen Huu Yen Nhi and T R Preston*

An Giang University, 25 Vo Thi Sau St., Long Xuyen City, Vietnam
nhynhi@agu.edu.vn
* TOSOLY, AA 48 Socorro, Colombia.

Abstract

This experiment was carried out in the research farm of An Giang University from November 2011 to February  2012 to compare growth of red tilapia (Oreochomis mossambicus) and black tilapia (Oreochomis niloticus) in monoculture and polyculture with Common carp (Ciprinus carpio) in an outdoor natural pond system, using biodigester effluent as fertilizer and duckweed as feed supplement. There were four treatments arranged as a 2*2 factorial with three replicates in a completely randomized design. The factors were: Red (RT) or Black (BT) tilapia in monoculture or polyculture with Common carp (C). Fish density was 5 fish/m2 with proportions of tilapia: Common carp of 5:1 in the polyculture treatments. The pond size was 4m2.   Biodigester effluent was applied daily at the rate of 0.484g N per pond per day. The ponds were seeded with duckweed to cover approximately 70% of the pond surface.

 

The growth rates in weight and length of the black tilapia were higher than for red tilapia, both in monoculture and in polyculture with Common carp. There were no advantages in net fish yield of combining tilapia with Common carp. The net fish yield with black tilapia was 7 tonnes/ha in 90 days, equivalent to an annual yield of 30 tonnes/ha.

Key words: Duckweed, feed supplement, recycling


Introduction

Fish production makes an important contribution to global food supply. It is also necessary to cope with the considerable and increasing demand for new feeds for fish by using natural sources, especially in response to climate change and depletion of non-renewable resources.

The human population is increasing in developing countries so the animal production demand also increases. This leads to increases in water pollution caused by discharging of waste feed and excreta, especially in intensive aquaculture. This is already a problem in the rural areas of Mekong Delta eat (Tran Thi Phan and Takeshi Watanabe 2002). There are many methods to resolve this problem, one of which is the use of the biodigester system. The products from the biodigester are gas for cooking and effluent that can be used as fertilizer for vegetables like water spinach (Kean Sophea and Preston 2001; Ly Thi Luyen 2003; Ho Bunyeth 2003), in fish ponds (San Thy et al 2004; Sen Sorphea et al 2010;  Tick and Preston 2012) or for water plants like duckweed (Le Ha Chau 1998). Biodigester effluent was reported to contain up to 1004 mg N/litre of which 40% was ammonia-N (Bui Phan Thu Hang 2003).

Duckweed (Lemna spp.) is rich in nutrients. It has been used as a main protein supplement for pigs (Bui Hong Van et al 1997), ducks (Bui Xuan Men et al 1995; Nguyen Duc Anh et al 1997) and fish (San Thy et al 2004; Latsamy and Preston 2007; Sen Sorphea et al 2010;  Tick and Preston 2012) and also as a source of minerals for ruminants (Leng et al 1995). Duckweed has the capacity to grow rapidly on nutrient-rich waste water and produce biomass rich in protein (Leng et al 1995).

Aquaculture systems are mostly practiced in cage or pond  culture, and fish may be raised in mono- or poly-culture.  However, to optimize the use of natural resources, the integration of animals, crops and fish is recommended (Preston 2009).  In this context it is considered that the application of biodigester effluent in fish ponds could be a way of increasing feed availability for fish through growing of duckweed, phytoplankton and zooplankton,  and at the same time reducing problems of pollution to the environment.

Hypotheses


Materials and methods

Location and climate 

This experiment was conducted in the farm of An Giang University, Long Xuyen City, Vietnam. The climate is tropical monsoon, with a rainy season between May and October and a dry season from November to April. The mean air temperature is 27°C and annual rainfall 1400-1500 mm. The duration of the study was 90 days, from December 2011 to March 2012. 

Experimental treatments and design  

The experiment was conducted in a completed randomized design (CRD) with 4 treatments arranged as a 2*2 factorial with 3 replicates. The factors were fish species (Red versus Black tilapia) and culture system (Tilapia in monoculture or in polyculture with Common carp). The individual treatments were: 

Fingerlings  

The fingerlings of Black tilapia, Red tilapia and Common carp were bought from the hatchery in Long Xuyen City with an initial weight of  7.43 – 7.50 g/fish.

Management

Twelve earthen ponds (2m deep x 2m wide x 2m long) (Photo 1) were lined with plastic sheet to avoid filtration of the water.  Biodigester effluent was taken from a plug-flow tubular plastic biodigester charged with pig manure, and applied to the ponds in quantities equivalent to  0.484g N/day. The ponds were seeded with duckweed  in amounts that covered an area of about 70% of the pond surface. The tilapia and Common carp were introduced into the ponds at the rate of 5 fish/m2. One third of the water in the ponds was changed daily.



Photo 1.
The pond system

Measurements 

The temperature,  pH and transparency of the water and the concentrations of dissolved oxygen  (DO), nitrite (NO2-) and total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) were measured every two weeks.  The weight and length of fish, and the densities of phytoplankton and zooplankton, were measured at the beginning of the experiment, and then at monthly intervals.


Specific growth rate (SGR) was calculated as
 
SGR (%/day) = 100 [Ln(wf) – Ln(wi)]/T ….(i) 

where:                

   Wf: Final weight (g) 

    Wi: Initial weight (g) 

     T: Number of days 

Daily weight gain (DWG) was calculated as: 

DWG (g/day) = (wf - wi)/T ……………….(ii)

Survival rate (SR%) was calculated as: 

SR (%) = 100[number of fish harvested/initial number of fish] …….(iii) 

 

The densities of phytoplankton and zooplankton were measured according to the method of Coutteu (1996).

 

Density of phytoplankton (cells/ml) and zooplankton (individuals/ml) were counted in a Sedgwick-Rafter counting chamber according to the formula:

Density = (T x1000 xVcd)/(A x N x Vmt)

In which:

T: Total number of cells/individuals counted

A: area of ​​ the cell count

N: number of cells counted

Vcd: the volume of water condensed

Vmt: the volume of sample collected

Chemical analysis 

Samples of duckweed were analyzed for DM, nitrogen (N), ether extract, and organic matter (OM) according to the procedures of AOAC (1990).
 

Statistical analysis 

The data were analyzed using the General Linear Model (GLM) of the ANOVA program in the  Minitab software (Minitab 2000). Sources of variation were: fish species, culture system, interaction culture system* fish species and error.


Results and discussion

Water quality 

The parameters of water quality were similar for all treatments (Table 1) and were within the accepted range for the normal growth of fish (Boyd 1990). The densities of both phytoplankton and zooplankton increased linearly during the experiment (Figures 1 and 2). There were no differences between the ponds with the different species of Tilapia nor  between ponds having mono- or poly-culture systems. The steady growth in both phytoplankton and zooplankton presumably was the result of regular application of biodigester effluent to the ponds.

Table 1. Mean values for water quality parameters in experimental treatments

 

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P

Temperature, 0C

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Morning

26.0

26.0

26.1

26.1

0.185

0.973

     Afternoon

28.8

28.8

28.7

28.8

0.233

0.972

pH

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Morning

7.33

7.35

7.29

7.33

0.048

0.867

     Afternoon

8.29

8.24

8.30

8.28

0.039

0.750

DO, mg/liter

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Morning

3.43

3.40

3.29

3.42

0.047

0.150

     Afternoon

6.27

6.52

6.51

6.52

0.091

0.149

NO2, mg/liter

0.19

0.21

0.14

0.22

0.041

0.493

TAN, mg/liter

0.21

0.24

0.19

0.18

0.041

0.805

Transparency, cm

2.65

2.62

2.61

2.70

0.109

0.927

  Zooplankton, individuals /ml

647

742

743

610

86.2

0.609

  Phytoplankton, cells/ml

9975

10617

11750

10819

1497

0.868



 Figure 1. Trends in the density of phytoplankton during the experiment Figure 2. Trends in the density of zooplankton during the experiment

Chemical composition of duckweed  

The average protein level of the duckweed during the experiment (Table 2)  was similar to that reported by Tu et al (2012) for duckweed fertilized with biodigester effluent at 150 kg N/ha. In the present experiment the N application from the biodigester effluent was 109 kg applied over the 90 days of the experiment.

Table 2. Chemical composition of duckweed (%)

Moister content

Organic matter

Fiber

Protein

Lipid

94.4

83.2

8.19

25.5

2.36

The effluent contained 876 mg N/liter which was only slightly lower than the 900 mg/liter, eported in an earlier experiment (Yen Nhi and Preston 2011). This probably reflected differences in the feed received by the pigs and the concentration of solids in the influent to the biodigester.

After 15 days duckweed was supplied to each pond as the area was insufficient to support the amount of duckweed biomass consumed by the fish.  The total weight of duckweed supplied for each pond ranged from 33.8  to 34.9 kg. There were no differences among treatments  (Table 3).

Table 3. Supplementation of duckweed in each pond of the experiment (fresh biomass)

Treatment

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P-value

Duckweed, g

34.9

33.8

34.0

33.8

1.530

0.949

 Growth performance  

 The black tilapia grew 25% faster than the red tilapia in mono-culture and 22% faster when in poly-culture with Common carp (Tables 4 and 5).  Changes in specific growth rate and growth in length showed a similar pattern. Survival rates were high and not affected by species of Tilapia nor the culture system.

Table 4. Mean values for growth performance of  Tilapia

Treatment

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P – value

Weight, g

Initial

7.45

7.43

7.50

7.49

0.017

0.069

Final

153.5a

149.3ab

124.4b

122.5b

6.23

0.014

Daily gain

1.62a

1.57ab

1.30b

1.28b

0.069

0.015

SGR

3.35a

3.33ab

3.12bc

3.10c

0.048

0.009

Length, cm

Initial

8.20

8.22

8.27

8.26

0.027

0.300

Final

20.1a

19.4ab

18.5b

18.4b

0.229

0.002

Daily gain

0.13a

0.12ab

0.11b

0.11b

0.003

0.008

Survival rate, %

93

100

98

100

3.436

0.508

a,b,c Means with different superscripts within fish species within rows are different at P<0.05
SGR, %/day


Table 5. Weight gain of black and red tilapia during the experiment

Species

Black Tilapia

Red Tilapia

SEM

P - value

Weight gain, g

144a

116b

4.0

<0.001

SGR, %/day

3.35a

3.11b

0.031

<0.0001

DWG, g/day

1.60a

1.29b

0.044

<0.001

DLG, cm/day

0.128a

0.1130b

0.002

<0.0001

a,b Means with different superscripts within fish species within rows are different at P<0.05

The Common carp grew at a slower rate than the Tilapia (Table 6; Figure 3), and this was similar irrespective of which species of Tilapia was present with the carp.

Table 6. Weight gain of tilapia and common carp in the experiment (g)

Treatment

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P – value

Tilapia

146a

142ab

117b

115b

6.22

0.013

Common carp

*

111

*

103

10.6

0.614

a,b Means with different superscripts within fish species within rows are different at P<0.05


 Figure 3. Weight gain of black (BT) and red (RT) tilapia, black tilapia
with common carp (BTC) and red tilapia with common carp (RTC)

 Changes in weight: length ratio

 Both species of tilapia showed an increase in the weight: length ratio as the experiment progressed (Table 7). After 90 days the weight: length ratio of black tilapia was higher than that of the red tilapia. ; however, the differences between treatments were insignificant (p>0.05), except at 30 days. 

Table 7. Mean values for weight: length ratio of Tilapia (g/cm)

 

Treatment

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P – value

Initial

0.91

0.90

0.90

0.90

0.0029

0.33

30 days

3.80a

3.16b

2.91b

2.84b

0.183

0.02

60 days

5.31

4.59

4.06

4.39

0.375

0.20

Final

7.62a

7.71a

6.73b

6.66b

0.281

0.05

a,b Means with different superscripts within fish species within rows are different at P<0.05

 Economic analysis 

The net fish yield was higher for the treatments with black tilapia and was not affected by the presence or absence of the Common carp (Table 8; Figure 4). On an annual basis, assuming similar growth rates, the yield would be close to 30 tonnes/ha for the treatments with black tilapia. This is considerably higher, than was reported for natural ponds supplemented with duckweed, by San Thy et al (2004) (9 tonnes/ha), Sen Sorphea et al (2010) (7 tonnes/ha), Tick and Preston (2012) ( 10 tonnes/ha) and Journey et al (1991) (10 tonnes/ha).

Table 8. Total yield of tilapia and common carp in each treatment

Treatment

BT

BTC

RT

RTC

SEM

P - value

Yield, kg/4m2

2.88

2.90

2.45

2.42

0.186

0.193

Production, kg/ha

7192

7245

6118

6044

465

0.193


Figure 4. Net fish yield of black (BT) and red (RT) tilapia, black tilapia
with common carp (BTC) and red tilapia with common carp (RTC)


Conclusions


References

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Received 29 March 2012; Accepted 26 June 2012; Published 1 July 2012

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