Abstract:
Stoking density plays a vital role in efficient aquaculture. To explore the suitable stocking density of largemouth bass (
Micropterus salmoides) in stable breeding system, this study investigated the growth rate and relative health parameters of largemouth bass under different stocking density conditions with initial body mass of (9.71±3.75) g of the largemouth bass that were randomly divided into three density groups (LSD, 1000 tails/circle, 50 tails/m
3; MSD 2000 tails/circle, 100 tails/m
3; and HSD, 4000 tails/circle, 200 tails/m
3) for an 180-day trial. The results showed that the average body weight and specific growth rate (
SGR) of the HSD group were significantly higher than those in the LSD and MSD groups at the early culture stage (1—30 day) (
P<0.05). However, the average body weight and the
SGR decreased with the increasing stocking density during the growth stage of 31—180 day. At the end of experiment, the triglycerides (TG), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), glucose (GLU), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) of the HSD group increased significantly (
P<0.05). Whereas, the activities of total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in LSD group were significantly higher than those in the other two groups (
P<0.05). Overall, the stocking density (4000 tail/tank, 200 tail/m
3) could stimulate the growth rate of largemouth bass at early culture stage, but high stocking density could affect the growth rate and health status of fish at the later growth stage due to the density stress effect.