Primary Productivity and Plankton Production of Poultry Waste Recycled Fish Ponds in Mid Hills

Abstract

An attempt has been made to assess the impact of poultry integration on primary productivity and plankton production in fish ponds of different farmers of the Champawat district of Uttarakhand state. Experiment was conducted for two integration level of poultry birds (10 and 20 chicks/ 100m2) having fish stocking densities 3.0 fish/m3 in triple replication. Due to the lower thermal regimes in hills, the Plankton volume and density was low, but comparatively zooplankton density was observed in higher side. A total of 17 genera of phytoplankton were recorded including 7 genera of chlorophyceae, most dominant group of algae. A total of 6 species of zooplankton were observed with abundance of rotifers in integrated ponds. The values of GPP were in lower side than that of in tropical condition. Recorded community respiration was 50.8-57.3% of GPP. Integrated pond could sustain higher phytoplankton density and primary production than the non-integrated pond. Hence the recycling of poultry waste is recommended in the mid hills because of its availability, low cost and its direct impact on biological productivity of fish ponds.