Feed intake stimulation of juvenile spotted scat (Scatophagus argus Linnaeus, 1766) using dietary seaweed supplementation (Ulva sp.)

This study appraised the growth performance of juvenile spotted scat when fed diets supplemented with Ulva sp. Seven isonitrogeneous and isocaloric diets with different levels of supplementation with Ulva sp. at 0 (control), 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30% were fed to 420 fish, weighing 0.49 ± 0.11 g. The diets were fed to triplicate groups of fish twice a day to apparent satiation for 10 weeks. The results showed that fish fed the diets with 5 and 10% seaweed demonstrated the highest mean WG and SGR (P .05). Fish fed the control diet and that containing 5% Ulva sp. showed a lower rate of FI than fish fed diets containing 10–30% (P .05) FCE although it was higher for those diets than for the fish fed the control diet and that supplemented with 30% Ulva sp. (P