Response of Substituting Fish Meal with Maggot Meal on the Growth Performance and Nutrient Utilization of Heterobranchus bidorsalis (Geoffrey Saint – Hilaire 1809) Fingerlings

Maggot meal produced from maggots grown on poultry manure was used in substituting fish meal in African Catfish, Heterobranchus bidorsalis diet. The study lasted for a period of 8 weeks.  Growth and nutrient utilization of catfish fingerlings were evaluated as fish meal was substituted maggot meal at the following levels, 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% respectively. Proximate analysis carried out indicated that maggot meal had 32.66% crude protein, 12.5% crude fat, 7.50 crude fiber, 11.16 % ash and 34.60% moisture content. Maggot meal based diets compared favourably with fish meal based diets at an inclusion level of 25% as there were no significant differences (p>0.05) in the growth and nutrient utilization indices. It was concluded that maggot meal is a viable alternative protein source to fish meal in the diet ofHeterobranchus bidorsalis. Its utilization is expected to reduce feed cost drastically, thus leading to a viable and sustainable aquaculture industry.