| The present study evaluated the growth performance, survival rate, and condition factor of swordtail fish (Xiphophorus hellerii) under controlled laboratory conditions over a 90-day period. Twelve fry were reared in a 20 L tank (operated at 8–10 L) with maintained water quality parameters: temperature (22–28°C), pH (7.0–8.3), dissolved oxygen (5.9–6.5 mg/L), ammonia (0.0–0.1 mg/L), and hardness (300–450 mg/L) (Boyd, 1990). Fish were fed twice daily with Artemia, Azolla powder, and infusorians (Chong et al., 2000; Rajan & Brindha, 2022). Growth increased from 0.6 cm and 0.001 g to 2.4 cm and 0.15 g by Day 90. The survival rate was 83.33%, which is within acceptable limits for ornamental fish culture (Rahman et al., 2015; Demir & Kırankaya, 2025). Fulton’s condition factor (K) improved from 0.463 to 1.085, indicating healthy growth (Le Cren, 1951). The study demonstrates that controlled laboratory conditions support optimal growth and survival of swordtail fish and provides baseline data for ornamental aquaculture (FAO, 2020; Rana et al., 2023).
Keywords: Swordtail fish, Xiphophorus hellerii, growth performance, ornamental aquaculture, condition factor, laboratory culture
|