Shrimp farming is practiced worldwide in tropical and subtropical regions. In subtropical areas, shrimp are often exposed to suboptimal temperatures during part of the production cycle, resulting in slower growth. The use of Sargassum filipendula as a feed additive has shown potential in increasing shrimp resistance to cold thermal shock. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate S. filipendula as a feed additive for Pacific white shrimp reared at a suboptimal temperature (22°C).
A 12-week experiment at a suboptimal temperature (22 °C) was conducted with Penaeus vannamei (initial weight: 2.95 ± 0.02 g). The trial was carried out in a clear water system (400 L tanks with 50 shrimp per tank) using a flow-through seawater setup (2.8 L min⁻¹ tank⁻¹) equipped with continuous aeration. Experimental diets were administered four times daily. The treatments consisted of a control diet and four dietary inclusion levels of S. filipendula as a feed additive (0.25%, 0.5%, 0.75%, and 1%).
Final weight, weekly growth rate, and final biomass were higher in the treatment with 0.75% S. filipendula inclusion compared to the control diet (Table 1). However, survival and feed conversion ratio were not affected by the inclusion of the seaweed in the diet.
The results of this study provide valuable insights into shrimp farming in subtropical regions. The addition of 0.75% S. filipendula to shrimp feed proved to be an effective strategy to enhance growth in animals exposed to a suboptimal temperature of 22 °C, without causing negative effects.
Financial support: This project has received funding from FAPESC (2021TR100876) and CNPQ (402501/2022-5)