Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2021

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Wills, Paul S.

Abstract

Florida Pompano Trachinotus carolinus are molluscivorous, greater than 70% of their natural diet consists of hard-shelled gastropods and bivalves. A specialized feeding mechanism (pharyngeal jaw) forms a crushing surface used to grind prey. In aquaculture, extruded pellets are fed and this feeding apparatus results in pellets fracturing and loss of fragments through their gill rakers. The effect of pellet form (hard vs. soft) and size on fractured pellet waste (FPW) and production characteristics of Pompano reared in recirculating aquaculture systems was addressed. No difference in FPW between the standard pellet size and smaller pellet size treatments. However, a difference in FPW at first feeding of the day between the hard and soft pellet treatments was observed, with no difference in FPW present at the last feeding. Results suggest that pellet size does not reduce the amount of FPW produced, while the use of soft pellets reduces the amount of FPW.

Extent

96 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Thesis (MS)--Florida Atlantic University, 2021.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00013839

Format

pdf

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