Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The nutritional status and digestibility of Oreochromis niloticus L. diet in Lake Langeno, Ethiopia

  • Published:
Hydrobiologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The composition, nutrient content and digestibility of the diet of Oreochromis niloticus were studied based on stomach and rectal samples collected monthly between December, 1995, and December, 1996, from Lake Langeno. The diet of O. niloticus was composed of a mixture of algal-based detritus, macrophyte scraps, phytoplankton and silt. Inorganic silt, macrophytes and detritus were more dominant in the diet during the wet than in the dry season. Total organic matter (TOM) in the diet was generally low (413 mg g-1 d.w.) reflecting the high proportion of inorganic silt in all seasons. Carbohydrates, proteins and lipids were important nutrients and constituted on average about 139, 185 and 57 mg g-1 d.w., respectively. The levels of all these nutrients varied significantly (ANOVA, P<0.0001) between months and declined during the wet season. Variation was observed in the ability of the fish to digest and absorb the different components of the food. Protein (41%) was better assimilated than total organic matter (32.7%), carbohydrate (31.7) or lipids (29.8%). The quality of the food expressed as P:E ratio (18.6-28.8 mg KJ-1) ranged from inadequate to adequate. The condition factor (CF) of the fish varied significantly between months in males (ANOVA, F=12.99, p<0.0001) and females (ANOVA, F=14.46, p<0.0001). It is concluded that the relatively poor condition factor (CF= 1.67) of O. niloticus in Lake Langeno, compared with other Rift Valley Lakes, follows from the low organic matter content and high proportion of inorganic silt in the diet.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abebe, E. & T. Getachew, 1992. Seasonal changes in the nutritional status of Oreochromis niloticus LINN. (Pisces: Cichlidae) in Lake Ziway, Ethiopia. Arch. Hydrobiol. 124: 109-122.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ahlgren, G., I.-B. Gustafsson & M. Boberg, 1992. Fatty acid content and chemical composition of freshwater microalgae. J. Phycol. 28: 37-50.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barnes, H. & J. Black, 1973. Estimation of lipids in marine animals and tissues: detailed investigation of the Phosphovanillin method for 'total' lipids. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 12: 103-118.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, S. H., 1976. Mechanism of digestion of detrital bacteria by cichlid fish: Sarotherodon mossambicus (Peters). Nature Lond. 260: 137-138.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, S. H., 1980. Detrital non-protein amino acids are the key to rapid growth of Tilapia in Lake Valencia, Venezuela. Science 207: 1216-1218.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, S. H., 1981. Digestion and assimilation of periphytic detrital aggregate by Tilapia mossambica. Trans. am. Fish. Soc. 110: 239-245.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, S. H., 1982. Feeding, digestion and growth of Tilapias: some qualitative considerations. In Pullin, R. S. V. & R. H. Lowe-McConnell (eds), The Biology and Culture of Tilapias. ICLARM Conference Proceedings. Philippines, Manila: 141-156.

  • Buddington, R. K., 1980. Hydrolysis-resistant organic matter as a reference for measurement of fish digestive efficiency. Trans. am. Fish. Soc. 109: 653-656.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caulton, M. S., 1982. Feeding metabolism and growth of tilapias: some quantitative considerations. In Pullin, R. S. V. & R. H. Lowe-McConnell (eds), The Biology and Culture of Tilapias. ICLARM Conference Proceedings. Philippines, Manila: 157-180.

  • Conover, R. J., 1966. Assimilation of organic matter by zooplankton. Limnol. Oceonogr. 11: 338-345.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Silva, S. S., M.K. Perera & P. Maitipe, 1984. The composition, nutritional status and digestibility of the diets of Sarotherodon mossambicus from nine manmade lakes in Sri Lanka. Envir. Biol. Fishes. 2: 205-219.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fryer, G. & T. D. Iles, 1972. The Cichlid Fishes of the Great Lakes of Africa. Their Biology and Evolution. Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh: 641 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gamachu, D., 1977. Aspects of climate and water budget in Ethiopia. Addis Ababa University Press, Addis Ababa: 71 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Getachew, T., 1987a. Food, nutrition and digestive efficiency in Oreochromis niloticus L. (Pisces: Cichlidae) in Lake Awasa, Ethiopia. Unpubl. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Waterloo: 109 pp.

  • Getachew, T., 1987b. A study on an herbivorous fish, Oreochromis niloticus L., diet and its quality in two Ethiopian Rift Valley lakes, Awasa and Zwai. J. Fish Biol. 30: 439-449.

    Google Scholar 

  • Getachew, T., 1988. Digestive efficiency and nutrient composition gradient in the gut of Oreochromis niloticus L. in Lake Awasa, Ethiopia. J. Fish Biol. 33: 501-509.

    Google Scholar 

  • Getachew, T., 1993. The composition and nutritional status of the diet of Oreochromis niloticus in Lake Chamo, Ethiopia. J. Fish Biol. 42: 865-874.

    Google Scholar 

  • Getachew, T. & C. H. Fernando, 1989. The food habits of an herbivorous fish (Oreochromis niloticus Linn.) in Lake Awasa, Ethiopia. Hydrobiologia 174: 195-200.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gnaiger, E. & G. Bitterlich, 1984. Proximate biochemical composition and caloric content calculated from elemental CHN analysis: a stoichiometric concept. Oecologia 62: 289-298.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jauncey, K. & B. Ross, 1982. A guide to Tilapia feeds and feeding. Stirling: Institute of Aquaculture, University of Sterling.

  • Kebede, E., 1996. Phytoplankton in a salinity-alkalinity series of lakes in the Ethiopian Rift Valley. Ph. D. dissertation, Uppsala University, Uppsala.

  • Kebede, E., Z. Gebremariam & I. Ahlgren, 1994. The Ethiopian Rift Valley lakes: chemical characteristics of a salinity-alkalinity series. Hydrobiologia 288: 1-12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Komarek, J. 1989. Modern approach to the classification system of Cyanophytes 4-Nostocales. Arch. Hydrobiol. Suppl. 82: 247-345.

    Google Scholar 

  • Le Cren, E. D., 1951. The length-weight relationship and seasonal cycle in gonadal weight and condition in the perch (Perca fluviatilis). J. anim. Ecol. 20: 201-219.

    Google Scholar 

  • LFDP, 1996. Lake Fisheries and Development Project Fisheries Statistical Bulletin, No 2, FRDD, MOA: 35 pp.

  • Moriarty, D. J.W., 1973. The physiology of digestion of blue-green algae in the cichlid fish Tilapia nilotica. Proc. zool. Soc. Lond. 171: 25-29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moriarty, D. J. W. & C. M. Moriarty, 1973. The assimilation of carbon from phytoplankton by two herbivorous fishes: Tilapia nilotica and Haplochromis nigripinnis. Proc. zool. Soc. Lond. 171: 41-55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Odum, W. E., P. W. Kirk & J. C. Zieman, 1979. Non-protein nitrogen compounds associated with particles of vascular plant detritus. Oikos 32: 363-367.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paasche, J., 1980. Silicon content of five marine plankton diatom species measured with a rapid filter method. Limnol. Oceonogr. 25: 474-480.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prescott, G. W., 1970. How to know the fresh water algae. W.M.C. Brown, Dubuque, Iowa: 848 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sokal, R. R. & F. J. Rohlf, 1981. Biometry. W.H. Freeman and Company, San Fransisco: 859 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strickland, J. D. H. & T. R. Parsons, 1968. A practical handbook of sea water analysis. Bull. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 467: 175-178.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tadesse, Z., 1988. Studies on some aspects of the biology of Oreochromis niloticus L. (Pisces: Cichlidae) in Lake Ziway, Ethiopia. Unpublished M.Sc. thesis, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa: 78 pp.

  • Tadesse, Z., 1998. Food and feeding ecology of tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus L. and effects of diet on the lipid quality of fish in some lakes in Ethiopia. Ph. D. thesis, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa: 139 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tadesse, Z. & T. Getachew, 1998. Diel feeding rhythm and assimilation efficiency of Oreochromis niloticus L. (Pisces: Cichlidae) in Lake Ziway, Ethiopia. Verh. int. Ver. Limnol. 26: 2324-2328.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tudorancea, C., R. M. Baxter & C. H. Fernando, 1989. A comparative limnological study of zoobenthic associations in lakes of the Ethiopian rift valley. Arch. Hydrobiol. Suppl. 83: 121-174.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tudorancea, C., C. H. Fernando & J.C. Paggi, 1988. Food and feeding ecology of Oreochromis niloticus (LINNAEUS, 1758) juveniles in Lake Awassa (Ethiopia). Arch. Hydrobiol. Suppl. 79: 267-289.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wodajo, K. & A. Belay, 1984. Species composition and seasonal abundance of zooplankton in two Ethiopian Rift Valley lakes - Lakes Abiata and Langano. Hydrobiologia 113: 129-136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wood, R. B., M. V. Prosser & R. M. Baxter, 1978. Optical characteristics of the Rift Valley Lakes, Ethiopia. SINET: Ethiop. J. Sci. 1: 73-85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wood, R. B. & J. F. Talling, 1988. Chemical and algal relationships in a salinity series of Ethiopian inland waters. Hydrobiologia 158: 29-67.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. Zenebe Tadesse

    Present address: Department of Biology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Bahir Dar Teachers' College, P.O. Box 79, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

    Zenebe Tadesse

Authors
  1. Zenebe Tadesse
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Tadesse, Z. The nutritional status and digestibility of Oreochromis niloticus L. diet in Lake Langeno, Ethiopia. Hydrobiologia 416, 97–106 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003807318933

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003807318933

Search

Navigation