Growth Performance and Body Composition of Pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) Fingerlings under Dietary L-Carnitine

Growth performance, food efficiency and body composition of pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) were investigated with 1 or 2 g/kg L-carnitine added to the diet. Control diet did not contain L-carnitine. Two hundred pikeperch fingerlings (1.63 g, mean weight) were stocked in each 1 m3 concrete tank and fed equally 6 meals per day for 6 weeks. Higher increment in body weight (5.92 ± 0.37 g), the highest specific growth rate (3.75 ± 0.17) and food efficiency (98.04 ± 4.56), the highest crude protein (64.53 ± 0.84), the lowest crude lipid (21.59 ± 0.23) and significant (P<0.05) lowering in food conversion ratio (1.02 ± 0.05) were obtained with 2 g/kg L-carnitine diet. The greatest survival rate (84.88 ± 0.92) occurred when fingerlings were fed with 1 g/kg L-carnitine. Both treatments with L-carnitine showed lesser rate of cannibalism than in control (1.25± 0.09). Use of dietary L-carnitine improved growth performance and body composition of pikeperch fingerlings.