GROWTH AND SURVIVAL OF PADDLEFISH FRY RAISED IN THE LABORATORY ON NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL DIETS

Recently hatched paddlefish (Polyodon spathula), obtained by artificia l spawning of wild brood stock in Missouri, were raised in an indoor w ater recirculation system at 16-degrees-C on one natural diet (brine s hrimp Artemia spp. and krill) and four artificial commercial diets. Di etary regime did not affect survival to 1 month after hatching, but it significantly affected final body size and growth rate. Best results were obtained with an artificial diet with high fat content. Paddlefis h fry readily accept artificial diets at the onset of exogenous feedin g and do not exhibit the imprinting reported for some sturgeon species when reared on natural diets.