International Journal of Aquaculture, 2018, Vol.8, No.6, 38-42
38
Research Report Open Access
Some Aspects of the Biology of Highfin Spotted Catfish
Parauchenoglanis
altipinnis
(Boulenger, 1911) in Ogbese River, Southwest, Nigeria
D.O. Odedeyi
Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, Faculty of Science, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria
Corresponding author Email
International Journal of Aquaculture, 2018, Vol.8, No.6 doi
Received: 01 Feb., 2018
Accepted: 13 Mar., 2018
Published: 23 Mar., 2018
Copyright © 2018
Odedeyi, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted
use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Preferred citation for this article
:
Odedeyi D.O., 2018, Some aspects of the biology of highfin spotted catfish
Parauchenoglanis altipinnis
(Boulenger, 1911) in Ogbese river, southwest, Nigeria,
International Journal of Aquaculture, 8(6): 38-42 (doi
Abstract
Biology of
Parauchnoglanis altipinnis
(Boulenger, 1911) including length-weight relationship, condition factor, sex ratio
and the fecundity were studied. Fishing methods employed for the collection of the 240 specimens used were gillnetting and cast
netting. The total lengths ranged from 12.8 to 18.5 cm and the body weights ranged from 28.0 to 75.9 g. The predictive equation was
log W = -1.15 + 2.35 Log L indicating negative allometric growth of the fishes in Ogbese river. The mean condition factor obtained
was 1.18. Male to female ratio of 1:1.07 was established. Fecundity estimates ranged from 492 to 6397 eggs with lengths 14.5 cm to
17.6 cm per female fish respectively, and had a direct relationship with increase in fish size. The mean gonadosomatic index (GSI)
for male was 0.52% and female was 14.15%. Highfin spotted catfish is one of the cherished food fish for poor people in Nigeria
hence, its study is important and essential. This baseline data on aspects of the biology of
P. altipinnis
will contribute to the studies
on the indigenous fish species in Nigeria.
Keywords
Length-weight relationship; Fecundity;
Parauchenoglanis altipinnis
; Ogbese River; Southwest Nigeria
Background
The length-weight relationship is an important fishery management tool, it can be used to predict the fish weight
from a known length (Pauly, 1983). The condition factor estimates the general wellbeing of fish (Abowei, 2006).
Successful fisheries management and aquaculture depends on assessment of fecundity to understand the recovery
ability of fish populations (Tracey et al., 2007). Gonadosomatic index and fecundity of fish are related to
spawning and reproduction of fish. The gonadosomatic index (GSI) reveals the percentage of body weight of fish
that is used for egg production (Fawole, 2002). The high demand for fish in Nigeria has increased pressure on the
population of fish which have resulted in a decline in catches from natural habitat like Ogbese River.
Parauchenoglanis altipinnis
belongs to the family Claroteidae and members are referred to as African spotted
catfishes, found in fresh waters of tropical Africa (Reed et al. 1967; Froese and Pauly, 2011) where they constitute
a significant component of the catches. This fish species which used to be in abundance is now scarcely found in
the catches of fishermen in Ogbese River, their availability is essential being a good source of food for the poor
people. Despite its wide distribution and economic value, there is dearth of information on its biology and
reproductive potential. For a maximum fish yield to be obtained from a body of water using the minimum effort
and without depleting adversely the available stock, knowledge of the general biology of resident fishes is
fundamental (Fawole, 2002). Knowledge about the reproductive biology is also very important in determining the
suitability of the species for aquaculture (Odedeyi, 2008). The present study is aimed at making investigations to
the length-weight relationship, condition factor, sex ratio, fecundity and gonadosomatic index of
P. altipinnis
in
Ogbese River, Southwest Nigeria. This may add to the limited existing information on this fish species.
1 Materials and Methods
1.1 The study area
The study was carried out in Ogbese River (Figure 1), a major tributary of Ose River in the Southwestern part of
Nigeria. The river lies between longitudes 5°26’E to 6°34’E and latitudes 6°43’N to 7°17’N. It took its source
from Apata Hills in Ekiti State, flows for approximately 22 kilometers from its source to meet Ose River which is
