Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences

The Korean Society of Fisheries and Aquatic Science (한국수산과학회)
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Diet composition and feeding habits of Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758) in Lake Shala, Ethiopia

  • Received : 2021.06.24
  • Accepted : 2021.11.16
  • Published : 2022.01.30
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Abstract

The present study was carried out to investigate the food and feeding habits of Oreochromis niloticus in Lake Shala to manage this species in this high Soda Lake. Stomachs of 226 fish (65.9%) had different food items, while those of 117 fish (34.1%) were empty. Phytoplankton was the dominant food categories occurring in 90.3% of the stomachs estimated and contributed 75.5% of the total volume. Bacillariophyceae (Nitzschia, Anomoeoneis, Navicula and Melosira) were identified as the most desired phytoplankton item. The prey items of O. niloticus differed among size classes (ANOVA, p < 0.05). The main prey items were zooplankton by the smaller-size class, and phytoplankton in fish of the larger-size class. Seasonal variation in the diet composition was evident (t-test, p < 0.05) and zooplankton, chironomids, nematodes, fish scales and detritus were important during the wet season, while phytoplankton predominates during the dry season. This study concludes that O. niloticus had a phytoplanktivores feeding mainly on phytoplankton and their feeding habits influenced by season and fish size in Lake Shala.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

We thank Dr. Assefa Wosnie and Dr. Yirga Enawgaw for their help and advice in fieldwork and research techniques. Finally, we thank the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA) and Abijatta-Shala Lakes National Park Administration for granting permission to conduct research in Lake Shala.

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