Suturing as an Alternative to Sacrificing Male Catfish in Artificial Fish Breeding: Short Communication (Published)
In artificial catfish breeding, unlike other fin fish, as a result of the presence of the convoluted vas deferens attached to the testis, spontaneous release of semen does not occur and hand stripping of the male does not yield any result. Since neither natural nor hormone induced breeding of catfish is capable of mass producing fingerlings needed by large scale fish farms that are progressively emerging in Nigeria, the only alternative for mass production of fish seeds is via artificial propagation. If this option is to be adopted, then male catfish should continually be sacrificed in each hatchery operation involving the catfish. This could drive male catfish into danger of depletion and this would indirectly affect the female population. Usually the male fish is killed and abdomen ripped open to extract the paired testes needed for egg fertilization. At times the fish breeder finds the paired testes not properly ripe to provide milt for fertilization. By the time this discovery is made, the male fish is already dead. In an attempt to prevent this wanton destruction of male catfish, a research that simulated what obtains in human surgery was carried out. In human surgery, the patient is carefully opened up and any vital organ can be extracted or implanted, then sutured back and the patient survives. In this research, 3 x I kg male Clarias gariepinus brood stock were each incised with a clean razor and the left testis was extracted for egg fertilization and each of the fish sutured back. They were returned to the brood stock pond where the wounds healed and the fish resumed active life without any medication. No casualty was recorded within six weeks of observation.
Keywords: Catfish, Catfish Breeding, Fin Fish, Fish Farm