GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF JUVENILE HYBRID GROUPER (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus x Epinephelus polyphekadion) FED DIET ENRICHED WITH PROBIOTIC AND/OR ENZYME

Muhammad Marzuqi*, Nyoman A. Giri, Wayan W. Astuti, Wawan Adriyanto, and Retno Andamari
 
Institute Mariculture Research for Aquaculture Development
PO BOX 140, Singaraja, Bali - 81101, Indonesia
 Email : marzuqi_rim@yahoo.co.id

Grouper culture is growing very rapidly in Indonesia. Feed supply is very important in farming activities as a determinant of growth and the production cost. The experiment on probiotics as a feed supplement was conducted to increase aquaculture production, increased resistance to disease, as well as increased growth performance of fish. Although experiment on the use of probiotic bacteria has been done, but the information regarding the application of the provision of probiotic bacteria in grouper feed has not been done. The objective of this experiment is to know the growth performance of juvenile hybrid grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus x Epinephelus polyphekadion) fed diets enriched with probiotics and/or enzyme.   

This experiment using 12 polycarbonate tank with 300 litre volume equipped with running water and aeration systems. Initial density is 50 fish/tank. Fish has average initial weight of 7.3 ± 0.6 g . The treatment in this experiment are as follows: (1) diet with probiotic, (2) without probiotic in diet (control diet), (3) diet with enzyme, and (4) combination of probiotics and enzymes in diet (Table 1).

The experiment used a completely randomized design (CRD) and each treatment was repeated 3 times. The fish were fed 2 times a day (08.00 and 15.00) at satiation for 8 weeks.  Cleaning of the bottom of the tank is done every day to remove dirt. . Body weight of fish is measured every week . Specific growth rate (SGR), weight gain, feed efficiency , feed consumption, protein retention, protein digestibility, and survival of fish are calculated to evaluate the effect of treatments.

Results of the experiment show that probiotic bacteria in diet affect the growth of  grouper fish  (p< 0.05 ). The highest specific growth rate (2.16 ± 0.02 %) and weight gain (237 ± 3.99 %)  are obtained in grouper fed diet with probiotics supplementation(Table 2). Feed containing a combination of probiotics and enzymes showed adversely effect on growth and survival of grouper.