Table 5.

Use of insects as feed ingredients in different aquaculture species.

Insects	Fish species	Inclusion (%)	Culture period	CP (%)	Initial B. W (g)	Final B. W (g)	Effect	References
Housefly maggots (M. domestica)	Tilapia (O. niloticus)	66% dried and fresh	56 days	35	10.39	52.24	The dried form of the housefly maggot exhibited superior growth performance compared to the live form.	[107]
BSF (H. illucens)	African catfish (C. gariepinus)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	12 weeks	40	0.46	14.37	BSFL meal can replace up to 25% of fishmeal without significantly affecting growth performance and feed utilization indices.	[108]
Cricket (G. bimaculatus)	Striped snakehead (Channa striata)	0, 50, 100	10 weeks	42.50	15	57	Growth performance and protein retention improved with higher inclusion levels of dietary cricket meal.	[109]
Cricket (G. bimaculatus)	Nile Tilapia (O. niloticus)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	8 weeks	35.5	0.26	1.16	25% cricket meal inclusion improves feed efficiency.	[110]
Cricket (G. bimaculatus)	Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)	0, 15, 30, 45, 60	8 weeks	53	19.87	56.51	There were significant differences in final body weight, SGR, FCR, viscerosomatic index, and survival rate among fish fed 15%, 30%, and 45% inclusion levels compared to the control diet.	[111]
Silkworm (B. mori)	Rainbow shark (E. frenatum)	30, 40, 50	8.5 weeks	35	1.44	6.62	A significant increase in SGR and PER was observed at 30% inclusion, while the FCR decreased.	[112]
Mealworm (T. molitor)	Rainbow trout (O. mykiss)	20, 30, 60, 100	90 days	48.5	5.1	55.9	100% replacement led to the highest weight gain and the most efficient FCR.	[94]
Mealworm (T. molitor)	Pacific white shrimp (L. vannamei)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	8 weeks	35	1.5–1.6	5.27	The highest weight gain and optimal FCR were observed when 50% of fishmeal was replaced with mealworm.	[113]
Silkworm (B. mori)	Pacific white shrimp (L. vannamei)	25, 50, 75, 100	8 weeks	40	0.2	5.38	The complete replacement of fishmeal had no impact on shrimp growth but positively affected diet digestibility, antioxidant capacity, and molting time.	[114]
BSF (H. illucens)	Nile tilapia (O. niloticus)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	56 days	30	3	11.83	The FCR and PER values at 50% inclusion were superior to those observed with other diets.	[115]
BSF (H. illucens)	Pacific white shrimp (L. vannamei)	7, 14, 21, 28, 36	63 days	35	1.24	15.95	Final weight, weight gain, SGR, and FCR were maintained when fishmeal replacement with BSFL meal was limited to less than 25% of the diet.	[116]
Mealworm (T. molitor)	Gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata)	25, 50	163 days	43	105	294	Live weight gain, FCR, and PER were highest at 25% and 50% inclusion levels.	[117]
BSF (H. illucens)	Yellow catfish (Peltobagrus fluvidraco)	0, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30	8 weeks	42	1.17	20.7	Replacing 20% of fishmeal in the control diet with BSF did not significantly affect weight gain, FCR, and muscle proximate composition.	[118]
Silkworm (B. mori)	African catfish (C. gariepinus)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	40 days	40	1.96	9	Fish growth rate and feed utilization parameters were higher in fingerlings fed diets containing 50% silkworm pupa.	[119]
Housefly maggots (M. domestica)	Red sea bream (P. major)	0.05, 0.5, 5	6 months	47–48	26.06	41.38	Red sea bream growth improved with increasing dietary housefly meal, with the lowest FCR observed at a 5% inclusion level.	[120]
Superworm (Z. morio)	Nile tilapia (O. niloticus)	0, 25, 50, 75, 100	8 weeks	32	5.57	10.24	Live weight gain, SGR, FCR, and PER were highest at 25% and 50% fishmeal replacement levels.	[121]

Abbreviations: B.W, body weight; CP, crude protein.