GROWTH. FEED DIGESTIBILITY, AND PROXIMATE BODY COMPOSITION OF JUVENILE Penaeus vannamei AND Penaeus monodon GROWN AT DIFFERENT DISSOLVED OXYGEN LEVELS

Growth, feed digestibility (apparent total dry‐matter digestibility), and proximate body composition of juvenile Penaeus vannamei and Penaeus monodon were evaluated at dissolved oxygen (DO) levels of 1, 2, 3, and 4 ppm at a mean temperature of 28°C. The four different W levels were obtained by aerating different rates of nitrogen gas countercurrent to a constant flow of seawater. A standard formulated diet containing the marker material Cr2O3, and a mean 280% exchange of 30 to 32 ppt seawater per day were used. Initial wet weights of shrimp were 60.2 and 55.5 mg for P. vannamei and P. monodon, respectively. Final mean wet weights for shrimp maintained at 1, 2, 3, and 4 ppm DO level after a 16‐day growth trial were 0.24, 0.40, 0.42, 0.46 g, and 0.16, 0.26, 0.29, 0.29 g for P. vannamei and P. monodon, respectively. For both species, a significant reduction in growth and in the instantaneous growth rate (k) was obtained at the lowest Do level. No significant differences were observed for apparent feed digestibility in either shrimp. Laboratory analysis revealed no differences in moisture and lipid content for both species, while protein content was found to differ only in P. monodon grown at different DO levels. A description of the experimental system and a discussion of the significance of the data to the production of shrimp in ponds is presented.