Effect of dietary enrichment with wild food items on the proximal composition of muscle and fat of Caiman latirostris in captivity

FLORES MARISCAL, S.; LABAQUE, M.C.; SIMONCINI, M. S.; PIÑA, C. I.; LEIVA, P. M. L.

Chetumal

Congreso; XXVI Working Meeting Crocodiles Specialist Group - UICN; 2022

Crocodiles Specialist Group - UICN

Animals’ diets,such a crocodilian, are reflected in their tissue’s chemical composition.Therefore, the incorporation of items belonging to the wild diet into the farm dietwould be evidenced in the tissues of individuals, where each item could inducea change as a source of nutrients. Our objective was to evaluate the effect ofenrichment diet with wild food items of Caimanlatirostris on the proximal composition (ash, moisture, protein, and totallipids) of caiman muscle and fat. Four dietary treatments were offered: diet with insects (DI),with snails (DM), and with red meat (DCR) and captivity diet (control, DC); thediets were offered ad libitum for 30days. The proximal composition of the diets, muscle and fat of caimans understudy were analyzed. Our work showed increases in total protein concentrationsin the DCR and DI diets, and an increase in total lipids in the DCR diet, withrespect to the DC. The PCA of muscle tissue showed that the data from caimanfed the DI diet were associated with changes in lipids and ash, andthose fed the DCR diet were associated with few changes in all parameters of proximal composition. In thefat, it was evidenced that DI and DCR reduced moisture content, while DIreduced protein content with respect to DC. Data indicate that DI and DCR dietsare recommended for the feeding of C.latirostris in captivity, since their incorporation would be a source ofproteins and lipids that would favor the correct development of caimans.