The effects of diet and digestive cycle on the gastrointestinal tract pH values in the goldfish, <i>Carassius auratus</i> L., Mozambique tilapia, <i>Oreochromis mossambicus</i> (Peters), and channel catfish, <i>Ictalurus punctatus</i> (Rafinesque)

Abstract

The digestive tract pH values of the teleost fish Oreochromis mossambicus, Carassius auratus and Ictalurus punctatus were determined in fish that were (1) starved, (2) fed herbivorous, omnivorous and carnivorous diets and (3) fed altered pH diets. The digestive tract pH profile was determined throughout an 8 h cycle. The herbivorous or carnivorous nature of the diet did not affect the pH values in any of the species. Significant differences in gut pH values were observed when the fish ingested diets with altered pHs. There was a difference between the starved and baseline fed values in Carassius auratus which was not observed in the other species. The pH values in the digestive tracts of the three species varied during the digestive cycle.