Fish Nutrition, Production, and Welfare

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 July 2024 | Viewed by 3648

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Parasitology Service, Clinics Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Ion Ionescu de la Brad, 700489 Iasi, Romania
Interests: veterinary medicine; zoology; parasitology; animal welfare

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Guest Editor
Research and Development Station for Aquaculture and Aquatic Ecology, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University, Carol I, 20A, 700505 Iasi, Romania
Interests: phytogenics; fish diets; water quality

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Guest Editor
Research station for aquaculture and aquatic ecology, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, 700506 Iasi, Romania
Interests: aquaculture; fish reproduction; cultivation technology; fish nutrition

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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Biology and Animal Cytology, Université Jean Lorougnon Guédé, Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire
Interests: parasitology; fish nutrition; veterinary medicine; aquaculture

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquaculture is a continuously expanding sector that developed due to the need to provide sustainable food for a growing population and to counterbalance the decline of the fish population in the wild. At the same time, aquaculture is a source of income and food for farmers in less developed countries. To ensure the high demand for products and profitability, the cultivation densities were greatly increased, an aspect that brings numerous challenges and problems. Among these, the most frequent are the problems related to water quality degradation, the occurrence of physiological stress, and decreased animal welfare. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic and the increase in energy prices caused an increase in feed prices, which represents over 50% of the production cost, putting farmers in a difficult situation. Scientific and technological development can contribute to solving these problems by developing more efficient growing systems with reduced environmental impact, making feed from new and sustainable ingredients with a higher conversion factor, and developing natural products to fight diseases and parasites. This Special Issue is dedicated to interdisciplinary studies on fish nutrition, physiology, chemistry, biochemistry, genetics, reproduction, and breeding technologies. The articles will cover a wide range of topics related to water quality, feed quality, the influence of diets on production levels, the quality of production, and fish welfare.

Prof. Dr. Liviu-Dan Miron
Dr. Marian Burducea
Dr. Cristian-Alin Barbacariu
Dr. Mamadou Kone
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aquaculture
  • fish nutrition
  • fish welfare
  • water quality
  • fish disease
  • feed additives
  • rearing systems
  • modern feeding technologies
  • waste management

Published Papers (2 papers)

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16 pages, 490 KiB  
Article
Effects of Substituting the Two-Spotted Cricket (Gryllus bimaculatus) Meal for Fish Meal on Growth Performances and Digestibility of Striped Snakehead (Channa striata) Juveniles
by Noratat Prachom, Bundit Yuangsoi, Jarongsak Pumnuan, Mohamed Ashour, Simon J. Davies and Ehab El-Haroun
Life 2023, 13(2), 594; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/life13020594 - 20 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2221
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the potential of using field two-spotted cricket Gryllus bimaculatus as the main protein source in fish feed for striped snakehead (Channa striata) juveniles. A 10-week feeding effect on growth performance, feed utilization, digestibility of major nutrients, [...] Read more.
This study aimed to investigate the potential of using field two-spotted cricket Gryllus bimaculatus as the main protein source in fish feed for striped snakehead (Channa striata) juveniles. A 10-week feeding effect on growth performance, feed utilization, digestibility of major nutrients, including amino acids, and physiological outputs of nitrogen and phosphorus were determined. A total of 225 C. striata juvenile fish (Initial weight, 15.0 ± 0.1 g) were randomly distributed into three dietary groups in triplicate (25 fish per rectangular aquarium within a semi-recirculating system). Each group was hand-fed one of the experimental diets containing the graded level of a cricket meal (CM) replacing 0%, 50%, and 100% (CM0%, CM50%, and CM100%, respectively) of fish meal (FM) protein component. The results showed that growth performance and protein retention tended to increase with increasing dietary CM levels, whereas the waste outputs of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) decreased. Apparent net protein utilization (ANPU) and P retention values increased with increasing levels of cricket meal inclusion level in the diet. There was a significant reduction in both N and P solid waste and dissolved waste output for snakehead with increased CM inclusion. There were significant effects of CM level on fish whole-body composition in terms of elevated protein and fat content. In conclusion, the CM is a viable alternative protein source for aquaculture feeds and can be included up to 100% as a replacement for FM without compromising the growth performance of striped snakehead Channa striata juveniles. This may also have a more favorable impact, with the potential to reduce N and P loading to the environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Nutrition, Production, and Welfare)
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7 pages, 1536 KiB  
Brief Report
Advances in Aquaculture Hatchery Techniques of Sea Urchin Sphaerechinus granularis (Lamarck, 1816) (Echinoidea: Toxopneustidae): Broodstock Conditioning and Spawning Induction
by Ricardo Luís, Ricardo José, João Castro and Carlos Andrade
Life 2023, 13(11), 2233; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/life13112233 - 20 Nov 2023
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Abstract
In response to the growing demand for sea urchin gonads (roe or uni) in Asian and European markets and the concerns regarding the overexploitation of wild populations, this preliminary study addresses the need for cost-effective protocols in echinoculture. The primary focus of this [...] Read more.
In response to the growing demand for sea urchin gonads (roe or uni) in Asian and European markets and the concerns regarding the overexploitation of wild populations, this preliminary study addresses the need for cost-effective protocols in echinoculture. The primary focus of this research was to evaluate the gonadosomatic index (GI) in captive-conditioned Sphaerechinus granularis over a five-month period and compare it with that of their wild-caught conspecifics. Additionally, two different spawning induction methods were assessed: potassium chloride (KCl) injection and agitation. Results indicate that captive-conditioned sea urchins exhibit significantly higher GI values when compared to their wild-caught counterparts. Furthermore, it was observed that the agitation method is equally effective as the KCl injection in triggering a positive response, i.e., gamete ejection, while maintaining lower mortality rates among the subjected S. granularis. In conclusion, this preliminary study underscores the pivotal role of broodstock conditioning in supporting the sustainability of sea urchin aquaculture. Moreover, the spawning induction method through agitation emerges as a viable alternative to the traditional intracelomic KCl injection, offering comparable efficacy without compromising the survival of the broodstock. These findings have significant implications for the development of sustainable sea urchin farming practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fish Nutrition, Production, and Welfare)
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