Interesting About Tilapia
PRT 3004 (Group 4)
Tuesday, 13 December 2016
Life cycle and system of tilapia
Tilapia
Tilapia is a genus of fish in the cichlid
(pronounced ‘sishlid’) family. These freshwater fish are native to Africa but
have been widely introduced to warm waters in many countries. Their natural
habitat is lakes but they are now extensively bred and reared in fish
farms.
The cichlids are mostly carnivorous, hunting
about for food on the bottom or snapping up organisms floating in the water.
Most species of Tilapia, however, feed on algae in plankton, though Tilapia zillii eats the stems and leaves
of water plants. When swimming in ‘schools’, the fish usually move almost
simultaneously and this tends to keep the school together.
In their breeding behaviour, the cichlids
may be divided into two groups, the substrate
spawners and the mouth brooders. The former lay eggs in a pit dug in the bottom of
the lake or pond. The eggs are aerated and guarded by the parents.
The mouth brooders, on the other hand, though they may lay their eggs in
pits, then take them into the mouth and keep them there till the young hatch.
The male guards the territory round the pit, driving off intruders by
nipping or pushing them (see Fig.1).
If a female enters the territory, the male changes his behaviour pattern to a slow, swimming movement, with body tilted downwards, leading her towards the pit he has dug (Fig. 2). There may follow a courtship pattern, which varies very much with the species, but often consists of quivering movements or swimming round and round in the nest-pit (Fig. 3), while the male butts at the protruding genital tube of the female.
Such an elaborate behaviour pattern ensures that sperms are shed at the moment that eggs are laid, thus increasing the chances of fertilization.In the mouth brooders, the courtship pattern is followed by spawning in which the female lays perhaps hundreds of eggs in the nest and these are immediately taken up into the mouth.
For about ten to twelve days the female
carries a mouthful of eggs or young fish (Fig. 4). The breathing movements are
restricted and feeding is not attempted (Fig. 5). If the young fish swim out of
the mouth, they are snapped up again but after about ten days the mother ejects
them in swarms. These swarms form a school and follow the mother. In some
species the youngsters will return to the mouth if danger threatens (Fig. 6);
the mother ‘calls’ them by swimming slowly backwards.
Tilapia Culture In
Ponds:
Pond culture is the most popular method of
growing tilapia in the world. They are grown in fertilized ponds where the fish
utilize natural foods from ponds.
The major problem to overcome in this system is
the prolific breeding of the fish that occur in ponds under mixed sex culture.
This breeding if not controlled results to overcrowding in the ponds and small
size fish (less than 100gms) which may not be of market value. Therefore
strategies for producing tilapia in ponds should aim at controlling spawning and recruitment.
- Mixed-sex culture
In mixed-sex culture of tilapia, both
males and female are cultured together but harvested before or soon after they
reach sexual maturity. The disadvantage in this is that fish is harvested at a
smaller size due to the limited growth period.
In this culture practice, fish are usually
stocked at low rates to reduce competition for food and promote rapid
growth. One month-old, 1-gram fry are
stocked at 1 to 3 per square meter into and grown for about 4 to 5 months. In cold
areas where the water temperatures are low and therefore slow growth, tilapia
might not reach marketable sizes in that period.
Newly-hatched fry should be used all the
time because older ones will reach sexual maturity at a smaller, unmarketable
size. They could also be mature fish but stunted. Supplemental feeds with 25 to
32 percent protein are generally used. The average harvest weight is about 250
grams, and total production about 0.25 Kgs/sq m for a stocking rate of 1 fish/m2.
Higher stocking densities can be employed to achieve higher production but must
be combined with better management. Expected survival is about 80 percent.
In Kenya two to three crops of fish can be
produced annually depending on the water temperature.
- Mono-sex culture
To overcome the problem resulting from
prolific breeding of tilapia, ponds are stocked with males only because the
males grow almost twice as fast as females.
Male fingerlings can be obtained by three
methods:
- Hybridization
- Sex-reversal and
- Manual sexing.
None of these methods is always 100
percent effective, and a combination of methods is recommended. Hybridization
can used to produce better results of males only. The hybrids can then be
subjected to hand sexing and/or sex-reversal treatment. Sex-reversal requires
obtaining recently hatched fry and rearing them in tanks or hapas where
they are subjected to hormone laced feed for about three weeks.
Diet,
reproduction, and life cycle
Most tilapias are omnivorous with a
preference for soft aquatic vegetation and detritus.The type of parental care helps to
distinguish the genera of tilapias. Members of the genera Oreochromis and
Sarotherodon are mouthbreeders (Chapman 1992), whereby usually the female
carries the fertilized eggs and newly hatched eggs in the mouth, offering
incubation and protection (Nelson 2006).
Mouthbrooders normally are polygamous (Nelson 2006). After the female has released the eggs and they are fertilized, the females (typically) pick up the eggs from the nests and incubates and protects in their mouths (Chapman 1992). Species of Oreochromis in particular have mouth-brooding where only the females incubate and protect the young in their mouths (Chapman 1992).
Other tilapias, belonging to the genus Tilapia, are normally substrate brooders, which incubate the eggs in a nest on the lake or pond bottom (Chapman 1992; Nelson 2006). Substrate brooders are usually monogamous and both parents may care for the eggs (Nelson 2006), including fanning water through the nests to incubate the embryos (Chapman 1992). Tilapias are notable for being able to become sexually mature at a small size (eight to ten centimeters or three to four inches) and a young age (two to three months old) (Chapman 1992). They live six to eight years or more, including up to age 11 or 12 (Chapman 1992).
Mouthbrooders normally are polygamous (Nelson 2006). After the female has released the eggs and they are fertilized, the females (typically) pick up the eggs from the nests and incubates and protects in their mouths (Chapman 1992). Species of Oreochromis in particular have mouth-brooding where only the females incubate and protect the young in their mouths (Chapman 1992).
Other tilapias, belonging to the genus Tilapia, are normally substrate brooders, which incubate the eggs in a nest on the lake or pond bottom (Chapman 1992; Nelson 2006). Substrate brooders are usually monogamous and both parents may care for the eggs (Nelson 2006), including fanning water through the nests to incubate the embryos (Chapman 1992). Tilapias are notable for being able to become sexually mature at a small size (eight to ten centimeters or three to four inches) and a young age (two to three months old) (Chapman 1992). They live six to eight years or more, including up to age 11 or 12 (Chapman 1992).
Aquaculture
Raising of tilapias for food consumption
is believed to first have taken place about 2,500 years ago (Chapman 1992).
Tilapia today has become the third most important fish in aquaculture after
carps and salmonids, with production reaching 1,505,804 metric tons in 2002 (Fessehaye
2006).
Because of their large size, rapid growth,
and palatability, a number of species of Oreochromis, Sarotherodon, and Tilapia
are at the focus of major aquaculture efforts. Like other large fish, they are
a good source of protein and a popular target for artisanal and commercial
fisheries. Originally, the majority of such fisheries were in Africa, but
accidental and deliberate introductions of tilapia into freshwater lakes in
Asia have led to outdoor aquaculturing projects in countries with a tropical
climate such as Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Indonesia. In temperate
zone localities, tilapiine farming operations require energy to warm the water
to the tropical temperatures these fish require. One method involves warming
the water using waste heat from factories and power stations.
Tilapiines are among the easiest and most
profitable fish to farm. This is due to their omnivorous diet, mode of
reproduction (the fry do not pass through a planktonic phase), tolerance of
high stocking density, and rapid growth. In some regions the fish can be put out
in the rice fields when rice is planted, and will have grown to edible size
(12–15 cm, five to six inches) when the rice is ready for harvest.
Commercial species of tilapia of
particular importance include the Java or Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus;
synonym Tilapia mossambica), blue tilapai (O. aureaus; syn. Tilapia aurea),
Zanzibar or Wami tilaopia (O. hornorum; syn. Tilapia urolepis), Nile tilapia
(O. niloticus; syn. Tilapia nilotica), and redbelly tilapia (O. zilli; syn.
Tilapia zilli) (Chapman 1992).
Reproduction
In all Oreochromis
species the male excavates a nest in the pond bottom (generally in water
shallower than 3 feet) and mates with several females. After a short mating
ritual the female spawns in the nest (about two to four eggs per gram of brood
female), the male fertilizes the eggs, and she then holds and incubates the
eggs in her mouth (buccal cavity) until they hatch. Fry remain in the females
mouth through yolk sac absorption and often seek refuge in her mouth for
several days after they begin to feed.
Sexual maturity in tilapia is a function of age, size and environmental conditions. The Mozambique tilapia reaches sexual maturity at a smaller size and younger age than the Nile and Blue tilapias. Tilapia populations in large lakes mature at a later age and larger size than the same species raised in small farm ponds. For example, the Nile tilapia matures at about 10 to 12 months and 3/4 to 1 pound (350 to 500 grams) in several East African lakes. Under good growth conditions this same species will reach sexual maturity in farm ponds at an age of 5 to 6 months and 5 to 7 ounces (150 to 200 grams).
When growth is slow, sexual maturity in Nile tilapia is delayed a month or two but stunted fish may spawn at a weight of less than 1 ounce (20 grams). Under good growing conditions in ponds, the Mozambique tilapia may reach sexual maturity in as little as 3 months of age, when they seldom weigh more than 2 to 4 ounces (60 to 100 grams). In poorly fertilized ponds sexually mature Mozambique tilapia may be as small as 1/2 ounce (15 grams).
Sexual maturity in tilapia is a function of age, size and environmental conditions. The Mozambique tilapia reaches sexual maturity at a smaller size and younger age than the Nile and Blue tilapias. Tilapia populations in large lakes mature at a later age and larger size than the same species raised in small farm ponds. For example, the Nile tilapia matures at about 10 to 12 months and 3/4 to 1 pound (350 to 500 grams) in several East African lakes. Under good growth conditions this same species will reach sexual maturity in farm ponds at an age of 5 to 6 months and 5 to 7 ounces (150 to 200 grams).
When growth is slow, sexual maturity in Nile tilapia is delayed a month or two but stunted fish may spawn at a weight of less than 1 ounce (20 grams). Under good growing conditions in ponds, the Mozambique tilapia may reach sexual maturity in as little as 3 months of age, when they seldom weigh more than 2 to 4 ounces (60 to 100 grams). In poorly fertilized ponds sexually mature Mozambique tilapia may be as small as 1/2 ounce (15 grams).
Fish farming strategies that prevent overcrowding and stunting include:
1) cage
farming where eggs fall through the mesh to the pond bottom before the female
can collect them for brooding
2) polyculture with a predator fish, such as fingerling
largemouth bass, at 400 per acre
3) culture of only males (monosex).
All-male culture is desirable in ponds not only to prevent overpopulation and
stunting but also because males grow about twice as fast as females.Methods of
obtaining predominately male fish include:
1) manually separating the sexes
based on visual examination of the genital papilla of juvenile fish
(hand-sexing)
2) hybridizing between two selected species that produce
all-male offspring (for example, Nile or Mozambique females crossed with Blue
or Zanzibar males)
3) feeding a male hormone-treated feed to newly hatched fry
for 3 to 4 weeks to produce reproductively functional males (sex reversal)
4) YY male technology (currently under development and not yet a commercial
option).
The sex of a 1-ounce
(25-gram) tilapia fingerling can be determined by examining the genital papilla
located immediately behind the anus (Fig. 1). In males the genital papilla has
only one opening (the urinary pore of the ureter) through which both milt and
urine pass. In females the eggs exit through a separate oviduct and only urine
passes through the urinary pore. Placing a drop of dye (methylene blue or food
coloring) on the genital region helps to highlight the papilla and its
openings.
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