ABSTRACT
An experiment was conducted to assess the potential of the European eel, Anguilla anguilla for earthen pond aquaculture without supplementary feeding at Lake Manzala, Egypt. Juvenile A. anguilla of mean length 11.7 cm and 2.4 g weight were stocked in earthen ponds measuring 3 feddans (about 12,600 m2) and 1 m deep. Stocking was done in May 2003 at a rate of 5000 fish feddan(-1) in a polyculture system including tilapia and mullets and fed mainly on natural occurring prey (natural spawned tilapia) and small shrimp. The eels were culture for a period of 2 years, May 2003 to April 2005. Sampling for growth and survival were evaluated yearly. At the end of the culture period, the gross weight of the harvested eels was measured and the net pond production calculated by the difference between weight stocked and weight harvested. Temperature varied from 11.5 to 28.2 degrees C and 12.2 to 29.3 degrees C; P(H), 7.3 to 8.9 and 7.5 to 8.8; Dissolved Oxygen (DO), 5.2 to 9.8 mg L(-1) and 4.1 to 8.3 mg L(-1); and Salinity, 2.5 to 5.5 psu and 3.0 to 6.8 psu for first year and second year, respectively. At the end of the culture period, A. anguilla attained average weight of 121.4 g fish(-1) at the end of the first year and a weight range of 152.5 to 430 g fish(-1) with an average of 280.36 g fish(-1) at the end of the second year. Survival rate ranged from 91% during the first year to 100% during the second year. Net eel production was 540.18 kg feddan(-1) at the end of the first year and 723.36 kg feddan(-1) at the end of the second year. Daily increments in weight per fish were 0.33 and 0.44 for first and second year, respectively. This experiment demonstrated the possibility of cultivation of eels as well as the higher growth rate in earthen ponds. The aquaculture strategy of eel with high stocking densities through low cost artificial feeds are recommended in future studies.
