Babassu meal in diets for tambaqui

Abstract

The aim of this work was to evaluate the performance, dressing and fillet percentage, carcass composition, weight of organs of digestive tract, relative intestine length and hepatica-somatica and viscera-somatica fat indexes of 120 tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum) fingerlings fed with diets with 0, 6 or 12% of babassu meal. Babassu meal inclusion did not affect the performance, dressing and fillet percentage and carcass composition. Gastrointestinal tract weight, viscera-somatic fat index and relative intestinal length were not affected, although hepatica-somatic index was reduced with increasing levels of babassu meal, possibly due to an antinutritional factor in the feed. In conclusion, babassu meal might be added in fingerlings tambaqui diets at level of 12% of inclusion.