Short communication FEEDING INTENSITY AND GROWTH OF SIBERIAN STURGEON ACIPENSER BAERI BRANDT IN POND CULTIVATION

• Main Authors: Julian Pyka, Ryszard Kolman
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Gordienko; Siberian sturgeon
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.522.2203; http://www.infish.com.pl/wydawnictwo/Archives/Fasc/work_pdf/Vol11Fasc2/Vol11fasc2 - w12.pdf

ABSTRACT. This paper presents the results of studies on the feeding and growth of Siberian sturgeon in the first year of life in monoculture in earthen ponds. The digestive tracts of the fish contained the following orders of invertebrate fauna: Cladocera, Coleoptera, Copepoda, Diptera, Heteroptera, Mollusca, Oligochaeta and Trichoptera. Diptera and Cladocera dominated. Small amounts of Copepoda, Heteroptera, Mollusca and Trichoptera were also noted. The average indexes of weight contribution reached the highest values (1.09 – 1.70 g) in the spring-summer season, while the value in the fall sample was 1.41 g. The highest values of frequency of occurrence (100%) of the dominant Cladocera and Diptera in the food and of feeding intensity (179 – 275%oo) also occurred in the spring-summer season. The highest values of the percentage indexes (> 50 %- eudominants) were reported for plankton crustaceans from the order Cladocera in spring and summer. After the spring sturgeon had adapted to the new environmental conditions, a clear increase in the growth rate was observed, and after the water temperature dropped below 13C growth stopped. Key words: SIBERIAN STURGEON (ACIPENSER BAERI), FOOD, GROWTH, MONOCULTURE The Siberian sturgeon Acipenser baeri Brandt is a migratory fish which is espe-cially skilled at adapting to changes in its environment and food supply; thus, it can occur and attain satisfactory growth in various climatic zones (Milstein 1975, Sokolov and Vasilev 1989). Sturgeon is usually cultured under fully controlled conditions, i.e. in ponds supplied with temperature-controlled water, most commonly in closed water recirculation systems and in ponds located in cooling waters as well as in trout ponds with artificial feed (Gordienko et al. 1970, Kolman et al. 1990, Reichle et al. 1991). In some countries sturgeon and sturgeon hybrids are reared in earthen ponds, either in monoculture or polyculture with calmly feeding species (Slivka 1994a, b