Importance of Live Feed in Aquaculture

Live food organisms include all plants (phytoplankton) and animal (zooplankton) lives grazed upon by economically important fishes. Phytoplankton’s are generally eaten by zooplankton. Thus, phytoplankton forms the basis of the food chain. Live foods are able to swim in water column and are constantly available to fish and shellfish larvae are likely to stimulate larval feeding response Most of the fish and shellfish larvae in nature feed on small phytoplanktonic and zoo planktonic organisms. The success in the hatchery production of fish fingerlings for stocking in the grow-out production system is largely dependent on the availability of suitable live food for feeding fish larvae, fry and fingerlings. Live food organisms contain all the nutrients such as essential proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, amino acids and fatty acids and hence are commonly known as “living capsules of nutrition�. Providing appropriate live food at proper time play a major role in achieving maximum growth and survival of the young ones of finfish and shellfish.