AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE FOOD AND FEEDING HABITS OF SAROTHERODON GALILAEUS (PISCES: CICHLIDAE) IN A SHALLOW TROPICAL RESERVOIR

Abstract

An investigation was conducted into the stomach content of Sarotherodon galilaeus in a shallow reservoir in the Northern Region of Ghana. Two hundred and seventy specimens were used for the study. Diet indices such as percentage composition by number and frequency of occurrence methods used to analyze the stomach contents showed that the food items covered a wide range of diatoms, desmids, algae, protozoan, detritus and accessory prey items suggesting that the fish species feeds on both surface water and bottom sediments. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in items ingested by both adults and juveniles. This suggests that the diversity of food items exploited by the adults is similar to that of the juveniles. However, the juvenile fish had preference for fish fry, diatoms and algae whiles the adults generally preferred diatoms and detritus, suggesting age specific dietary preference. There was also a high degree of feeding intensity during the study period since percentage of full stomachs in both adults and juveniles was higher than that of empty stomachs and this also indicates that food was abundant in the reservoir during the study period. The ability of Sarotherodon galilaeus to feed on a wide range of food items makes it possess a high aquaculture potential. This is particularly important for the culture of this species since it is possible to formulate artificial diets necessary for its mass production but this is yet to be realized in Ghana.