Aquaculture America 2026

February 16 - 19, 2026

Las Vegas, Nevada

Add To Calendar 19/02/2026 09:30:0019/02/2026 09:50:00America/Los_AngelesAquaculture America 2026INFLUENCE OF FEEDING STRATEGIES ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE, BODY COMPOSITION, AND HISTOMORPHOLOGY OF LIVER AND INTESTINE IN JUVENILES OF ATLANTIC CROAKER Micropogonias undulatusChampagne 2The World Aquaculture Societyjohnc@was.orgfalseDD/MM/YYYYanrl65yqlzh3g1q0dme13067

INFLUENCE OF FEEDING STRATEGIES ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE, BODY COMPOSITION, AND HISTOMORPHOLOGY OF LIVER AND INTESTINE IN JUVENILES OF ATLANTIC CROAKER Micropogonias undulatus

Juan F. Paredes*, Magaleate Kostelnik, Christopher Robinson, Li Sun Chin, Paul S. Wills, Nicholas Romano

 

Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute

Florida Atlantic University

5600 US 1 Hwy

Fort Pierce, FL 34946

paredesj@fau.edu

 



Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) is a medium-sized marine carnivore that has a market as both baitfish and foodfish, but research on their aquaculture is limited, particularly on feed management.  In this 8-week feeding trial, Atlantic croaker (initial weight of 14.0 g) were fed to apparent satiation (AS) twice daily compared with a fixed feeding ration at 5% body weight (body weight) fed feeding frequencies (FF) x2, x3, x4 or x5 daily and the growth, feeding efficiency, various body indices as well as whole-body proximate and fatty acid composition.   Results showed that feed intake in the AS treatment corresponded to ~ 2.65% BW with no significant growth difference compared to the other FF treatments at 5% BW.  However, the FCR was significantly better in AS compared to all other treatments. The K, VSI, and HSI were significantly higher in the AS treatment compared to the FF x2 treatment.  Histological observations and scoring revealed significantly more hepatic vacuolization that is consistent with excessive lipid deposition.  Intestinal histomorphological observations and scoring were not significantly among treatments.  Similarly, there were no significant differences in the whole-body proximate composition or fatty acid profile in Atlantic croaker among treatments.  Results demonstrate that 5% BW/day was excessive and this overfeeding whereas feeding at AS (~ 2.65% BW/day) was sufficient to maintain similar growth, feeding efficiency and is likely to be a more practical strategy for Atlantic croaker juvenile production.