Effect of diets of different protein levels for Nile tilapia broodstock on sperm quality characteristics and on egg biomass production and fecundity

Abstract

Manoel Joaquim Peres Ribeiro, Mariana Machado Evangelista, Eduardo Antônio Sanches, Taís da Silva Lopes, Giovani Sampaio Gonçalves, Elizabeth Romagosa

This experiment aimed to assess the effects of diets for Nile tilapia broodstock with six months of age, fed different levels of crude protein (CP), 32, 38, 44 and 50%, on sperm quality characteristics and on egg biomass production and fecundity. In Dec./13 the fish began to be to fed, however, the collections occurred the Jan. to May/14. Two earthen ponds (200 m2 X 1.5 m) were used, and ten hapas (3.0 x 1.5 x 1.5m) were installed in each one, making a total of 20 experimental hapas, in two stages: (1) Reproduction (3M; 9F) and (2) Recovery, the females stayed in those 16 hapas, and the males were moved to the remaining four hapas. At the end of the experiment, 80.56% of females fed the highest level of CP spawned, in contrast to 69.44% of those fed the lowest level performing an efficiency of 11,12% in relation of spawn. In this work we emphasize the use of 44% diets for males. However, for females the improvement in reproductive performance was observed in spawning. It should be noted that the nutritional requirements of breeders for Nile tilapia, for both sexes, should be differentiated mainly during the gonadal maturation process.