Effects of algae and live food density on the feeding ability, growth and survival of miiuy croaker during early development

The larval stage of marine fish is the bottleneck in the development of mariculture. In this study, the effects of microalgae and live food density on feeding rate, feeding intensity, growth, survival and starvation tolerance of miiuy croaker Miichthys miiuy larvae during early development were studied under controlled conditions. When microalgae Nannochloropsis oculata were added to the experimental tanks, all of the above-mentioned indexes increased, independently of the live food density. The feeding rate, feeding intensity, growth and survival of miiuy croaker increased with rotifer density, and the highest values of these parameters were attained when rotifer density was 10 ind/ml; however, these indexes were lower at rotifer density of 25 ind/ml than at 10 and 15 ind/ml. More importantly, the best starvation tolerance was observed when rotifer density was 5 ind/ml, followed (in decreasing levels of tolerance) by 10, 15 and 1 ind/ml. The results demonstrated that the feeding rate, feeding intensity, growth and survival of miiuy croaker in practical production benefited from increased rotifer density (with an optimum density at 10 ind/ml) and the addition of algae to the culture water.