Preference Food of Carp Fry, Fingerling and Yearlings

Food of Carp Fry

• Newly hatched larvae of about 5 mm have a yolk sac, on which they subsist for at least two days. Then they start feeding on organisms found in water.
• Three to four days old carp fry measuring about 7 mm feed primarily on zooplankton.
• Food habits of all the species of major carps are identical at the fry stage. They all start feeding on cladocerans and the animalcules.
• Cladocerans and rotifiers form the bulk of the food consumed by these young fish. Cladocerans are the most preferred food of carp fry.
• A single fry may consume as many as 150 cladocerans within 24 hours
• Carp fry have the ability to choose and eat only selective food. Generally they discriminate plankton and prefer zooplankton as food.
• Species of Daphnia, Moina. Cyclops, Diaptomus, Brachionus, Keretella forms the most important components of zooplankton food.
• When these organisms are scarce, carp fry may consume plankton algae like Pandorina, Volvox and Microcystis as an emergency food.
• Carp fry raised on phytoplankton alone is very weak and the survival is very poor so far as carps are concerned.
• Phytoplankton organisms have a resistant cell wall, which is indigestible by tender fry. Zooplankton especially cladocerans are consumed eagerly and also digested quickly.

Food of Carp Fingerlings

• Each species of major carps at this stage have a choice for its own preferential food.
• However, there is only little change in food habits of catla fingerlings which continue to feed largely as before on cladocerans and other animalcules, making very little, use of microscopic plants floating in water.
• Rohu fingerlings start feeding on microscopic plants, vegetable debris, deritus and mud in addition to few cladocerans.
• The food of mrigal fingerlings is more or less same as that of rohu. but they consume relatively larger quantities of decaying vegetable debris, phytoplankton organisms, sand and mud.

Food of Carp Yearling and Adults

• Catla do not exhibit any marked change in food and feeding habits even at the yearling and adult stage. At all stages of their growth, their preferred food is largely composed of cladocerans, copepods and rotifiers, although they do swallow algae, vegetable debris and other organisms floating in the water.
• Rohu at this stage consumes, considerable quantity of bottom sand, mud, vegetable debris and planktonic algae. But, have very little proportion of cladocerans and other animalcules in their diet.
• Mrigal at fingerling and adult stages have a common diet as that of rohu of the same size and age. But, consume more quantities of organic and vegetable debris, microscopic plants, sand and mud. Mrigal feeds mostly on debris and decaying matter.