Published
2023-06-20
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Inclusion of crayfish meal (Procambarus clarkii) in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fry feed

DOI: https://doi.org/10.22490/21456453.6154
Section
Área Pecuaria

Categories

Rafael Rosado Truchas de La Sierra, Guasca-Colombia
Miguel Landines Universidad Nacional de Colombia
Diego Rodríguez ITALCOL SA
Yesid González-Ruíz Grupo de Investigación y Manejo Integrado de Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad (XIUÂ), Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia
Mabel Pimiento-Ortega Grupo de Investigación y Manejo Integrado de Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad (XIUÂ), Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia
Isabella González-Gamboa Grupo de Investigación y Manejo Integrado de Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad (XIUÂ), Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia. Tunja-Colombia
Yimy Herrera-Martínez Grupo de Investigación y Manejo Integrado de Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad (XIUÂ), Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia. Tunja-Colombia

Contextualization: The American red crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, is an invasive species whose presence has been confirmed in central Colombia. In the southern United States, where it is naturally distributed, it is an important aquaculture resource; however, high environmental impacts have been documented in areas where it has been introduced, precisely because of its high colonization capacity and the consequent impact on native species. The growing record of its presence in different systems in the center of the country, suggests an accelerated expansion pattern and implies that, as has occurred in other countries, negative effects may occur on the general structure of these highland ecosystems if mechanisms are not applied that allow some level of control.

Knowledge gap: The possibility of controlling its expansion through manual eradication is a viable alternative, as long as some type of use is validated; this should include an economic incentive to motivate people to fish for it. The process to obtain meal that serves as a protein source for aquaculture concentrates is an option that should be evaluated.

Purpose: Three percentages of inclusion of crayfish meal, in partial replacement of fish meal, were evaluated in a concentrate formulated for rainbow trout fingerling stage.
Methodology: Specimens of P. clarkii were captured in the environment, using traps with animal bait. The crayfish were processed whole to obtain meal. The experimental feed was elaborated from the evaluation of meal composition; four treatments were applied in triplicate, with three levels of crayfish meal inclusion (T1: 2 %, T2: 4 % and T3: 6 %) and a control without meal. These were fed to trout fry from the start of feeding until they reached 6 cm total length. Total length (cm) and weight (g) were sampled every ten days for a period of 60 days. Through analysis of variance (ANOVA), the following variables of the fry were compared at the end of the period: final weight (Pf, g), total length gains (GLT, cm), weight (GP, g), feed conversion factor (FCA), specific growth rate (TCE, %), condition factor (K) and mortality (%).

Results and conclusions: Among treatments and for the variables evaluated were no statistically significant differences among treatments. It is concluded that, up to the size worked, the inclusion at a level of 6% of crayfish meal is feasible as a partial replacement of fish meal. Obtaining the meal from whole specimens makes it difficult to balance diets with higher replacement percentages.