| Abstract: | Fishes of the carnivorous species Clarias batrachus of different size (length of 12 to 22 cm, weight of 15 … 57 g) were kept in aquaria with and without feeding on fish meal with or without an addition of rice bran, the fish mass having been 15 g/l. Aquaria with the same addition of food pellets were used as the control. The number of colonies of heterotrophic bacteria as well as the M.P.N. of the ammonifying bacteria was higher in the fish-containing aquaria than in the control, and in the fish-containing aquaria the colony number and the number of ammonifying bacteria significantly increased with the size of fishes and with feeding. The heterotrophic bacteria reached the highest numbers 4 h after the beginning, the numbers of ammonifyers increased till the fifth day. Parallel to the number of ammonifyers, also the ammonium concentration increased. |
