ISSN 2756-3448
Global Journal of Food and Agricultural Sciences Vol. 2 (2) pp. 077-080, February, 2015. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Reproductive biology practice of Tilapia mariae (Boulenger 1901) in a small lake in south-eastern Nigeria
*Okojie D. Afeno, Ekuwere Darlington and Okocha Tobechukwu
Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port-Harcourt, Nigeria.
E-mail: [email protected]
Accepted 22 December, 2014
Abstract
Some aspects of the reproductive biology of Tilapia mariae of Umuoseriche man-made lake such as fecundity of female fishes was determined gravimetrically after the sex had been established. The ratio of male to female T. mariae of Umuoseriche Lake was 1:1.56. The numbers of female fishes were greater in 110 – 145 mm and 185 – 195 mm size groups. Males dominated the 135 – 175 mm size group. Gonadosomatic index ranged between 1.4 and 3.4 with a mean of 2.25 ± 0.7. Mean ovarian weight was 1.7 ± 0.3 g and a mean fecundity of 1705 ± 629 eggs/ clutch.
Key words: Tilapia mariae, gonadosomatic index, fecundity.