Fatty acid composition in wild and cultivated pacu and pintado fish

The fatty acid compositions of muscle tissue taken from wild strains of pintado (Pseudoplatystoma corruscans) and pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) fish, which were taken from the Brazilian Pantanal, were compared to the fatty acid compositions of tissue taken from two corresponding cultivated strains, which were fed commercial diets. The cultivated species possessed lipid contents of 12.2% (pacu) and 8.9% (pintado) while the wild species contained 7.9% (pacu) and 2.5% (pintado) lipids. Despite the high lipid contents of the cultivated pintado and pacu, the n‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations in muscle tissue were higher in wild pintado (224.9 mg/g flesh) and wild pacu (485.1 mg/g flesh) than in their respective cultivated strains (129.8 and 106.1 mg/g flesh, respectively). The n‐6/n‐3 ratios of pacu were 1.2 (wild) and 9.8 (cultivated), and those of pintado were 1.0 (wild) and 7.3 (cultivated). The fatty acid composition of pacu and pintado are strongly influenced by habitat and diet.