Assessment of Temperature and Feeding Frequency as Determinants of Growth Performance and Feed Utilization in African Catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) Fingerlings

This study evaluated the effects of water 
temperature and feeding frequency on the 
growth performance and feed utilization of 
Clarias gariepinus fingerlings reared in the 
hatchery of the Federal College of Freshwater 
Fisheries Technology (FCFFT), Baga, Borno 
State, Nigeria. A total of 540 fingerlings (mean 
initial weight 6.4 ± 0.3 g) were stocked into 27 
tanks in a 3 × 3 factorial design with three 
temperature regimes (24 °C, 27 °C, and 30 °C) 
and three feeding frequencies (once, thrice, 
and five times daily). After 56 days, 
fingerlings at 27 °C fed thrice daily achieved 
the highest mean weight gain (45.6 g), specific 
growth rate (3.74% day⁻¹), lowest feed 
conversion ratio (1.54), and highest protein 
efficiency ratio (1.63). Survival exceeded 90% 
across 
treatments. 
Once-daily 
feeding 
produced the poorest results (WG = 18.6 g; 
FCR = 3.23), while feeding five times daily 
increased feed intake but did not improve 
growth compared to thrice daily. Water quality 
parameters remained within safe limits, 
though dissolved oxygen was lowest (5.2  mg/L) and ammonia highest (0.42 mg/L) at 30 
°C. These results confirm that optimal 
Performance of C. gariepinus fingerlings is 
achieved at 27-30 °C with thrice-daily 
feeding, providing practical guidance for 
hatchery management in Nigeria.