Potency of plant hormone (Carica Papaya Seeds) on Growth Performance and Masculinisation of Tilapia ‘Wesafu’

Abstract

The production of tilapias remains low due to poor growth performance reported by fish farmers. One of the underlying reasons is the early female maturation at a very small size and precocious breeding in ponds, resulting in overpopulation which leads to stunted growth. This research investigated the potency of Carica papaya seed as a natural sex-reversal 
agent in tilapia production and its effect on growth. A total of 600 fry of Tilapia ‘wesafu’ were used; each weighing averagely, 0.47±0.01g. They were randomly distributed in triplicate into 12 hapas (1m×0.5m). Each hapa containing 50 fry, were placed in four earthen ponds (8m×3m). Fish in Treatment 1 were fed without (0.0g/Kg) powdered Pawpaw seeds which was the control. Fish in Treatments 2, 3 and 4 were fed with Pawpaw seed diet at doses of 15.0, 20.0 and 25.0g/kg feed respectively. The result showed that fish fed at 20.0g/Kg and 25.0g/Kg of C. papaya had the highest final weight gain (20.92±0.29 g) and (21.13±0.29 g) at the end of the experiment respectively. The masculinisation revealed that T. ‘wesafu’ fed 20.0 g/Kg of C. papaya diet (81.67±0.85%) was higher and significantly different (P<0.05) compared to normal diet. Since natural hormones from plant materials (C. Papaya) are biodegradable in nature, it could be used as a viable alternative to synthetic hormones.