Pilot study on the growth performance of red seaweed, Gracilaria corticata in different salinities

Shilta, M T and Abhijith, Ramya and Vinod, K and Asokan, P K and Imelda, Joseph (2022) Pilot study on the growth performance of red seaweed, Gracilaria corticata in different salinities. Marine Fisheries Information Service, Technical and Extension Series (251). pp. 15-18. ISSN 0254-380X

Text MFIS 251_Imelda Joseph_2022.pdf Download (603kB)

Abstract

Gracilaria, the third largest genus in the red algal group Rhodophyta is a diverse genus with cercial significance for agar production. Present work was carried out under controlled indoor conditions, to determine the optimal salinity requirement for G. corticata. Raft culture in plastic crates using different salinity levels was employed. The vegetative thalli of G. corticata were collected from the intertidal region during low tide from Thikkodi, Kozhikode. Ten polypropylene ropes were tied parallel at 10 cm intervals on the plastic rafts and introduced into the rectangular plastic crates of 60 x 40 x 30 cm3. About 100 g of G. corticata were used as seeding material on rafts and are introduced to different salinities viz 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 ppt in triplicates for 30 days. Thalli growth was recorded the fastest in crates containing full strength seawater (35 ppt) and successively slower in crates with lower salinities. After 30 days of culture period, mean weight of seaweed harvested from each treatment was 108±8.5 g (20 ppt), 155±12.5 g (25 ppt), 156±10.2 g (30 ppt) and 160±12.8g (35 ppt). The results indicated that G. corticata can be cultured using raft method at salinity above 25 ppt. The reduction in the level of nutrients like ammonia, silicate and phosphate in the culture system indicated that the nutrients were utilized by G. corticata for their growth. Future studies with G. corticata in field trials in integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) would prove its feasibility in nutrient load reduction in the estuarine as well as coastal waters.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Red seaweed; Gracilaria corticata; salinity; raft culture
Subjects:	Algae > Seaweed Aquaculture Algae
Divisions:	CMFRI-Calicut (Kozhikode) CMFRI-Kochi > Fishery Environment Management Division Subject Area > CMFRI > CMFRI-Kochi > Fishery Environment Management Division CMFRI-Kochi > Fishery Environment Management Division Subject Area > CMFRI-Kochi > Fishery Environment Management Division
Depositing User:	Arun Surendran
Date Deposited:	12 Jul 2022 10:05
Last Modified:	12 Jul 2022 10:05
URI:	http://eprints.cmfri.org.in/id/eprint/16048

Actions (login required)

View Item