Effect of Marine Macro Algae (Acanthophora spicifera) Extract on Growth Indicators and Survival Rate in Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Mosharefi, Seyyedeh Sara; Shoukat, Parvaneh; Seyyedi, Sadra

Volume 16, Issue 2 (summer 2026) J. Aqua. Eco 2026, 16(2): 11-22 | Back to browse issues page

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Mosharefi S S, Shoukat P, Seyyedi S. Effect of Marine Macro Algae (Acanthophora spicifera) Extract on Growth Indicators and Survival Rate in Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio). J. Aqua. Eco 2026; 16 (2) :11-22
URL: http://jae.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-1175-en.html

Effect of Marine Macro Algae (Acanthophora spicifera) Extract on Growth Indicators and Survival Rate in Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Seyyedeh Sara Mosharefi

, Parvaneh Shoukat ^*

, Sadra Seyyedi

Abstract: (8 Views)

This study evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with the red macroalgal extract Acanthophora spicifera on growth performance, survival, and feed utilization efficiency in common carp (Cyprinus carpio). Following acclimation, 144 fish with an initial mean body weight of 37 ± 0.45 g and mean length of 13 ± 0.27 cm were randomly allocated to four dietary treatments, including three experimental diets and one control, with three replicate tanks per treatment. Fish were stocked in twelve 300-L fiberglass tanks at a density of 12 fish per tank and reared for 60 days under continuous aeration. Experimental diets were supplemented with 0 (control), 100, 200, or 400 mg of A. spicifera extract per kg of diet. Biometric measurements were recorded at 10-day intervals throughout the experimental period. At the end of the trial, growth performance and feed utilization were assessed using mean body length, mean body weight, weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR), growth rate (GR), relative growth rate (RGR), survival rate (SR), condition factor (CF), feed conversion ratio (FCR), feed efficiency/protein efficiency ratio (FE/PER), and voluntary feed intake (VFI). Dietary supplementation with 100 mg kg⁻¹ A. spicifera extract significantly improved growth performance and feed utilization compared with the control (p < 0.05). Increasing the supplementation level to 200 and 400 mg kg⁻¹ resulted in a progressive attenuation of these beneficial effects; nevertheless, both treatments generally maintained better performance than the control. Overall, the results indicate that dietary supplementation with A. spicifera extract at 100 mg kg⁻¹ diet was the most effective treatment for improving growth performance and feed utilization in common carp, while maintaining high survival.

Keywords: Red Macroalgae, Acanthophora spicifer, Cyprinus carpio, growth, survival