Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

PROBLEM ASSOCIATED WITH BREEDING OF TWO COMMERCIALLY IMPORTANT CATFISH CLARIAS MAGUR (HAMILTON, 1822) AND HETEROPNEUSTES FOSSILIS (BLOCH, 1974): ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES FOR SOLUTION

Pradip Kumar Maurya, Shubham Gupta, Arvind Kumar Verma and Sullip Kumar Majhi,

Abstract

Worldwide aquaculture is the fastest growing sector among other allied sectors. The carps, over the years, have dominated the inland aquaculture in India. However, very recently some of the minor carps and catfishes have successfully paved their ways into the sector. The catfishes, specifically the Clarias magur and Heteropneustes fossilis, are two most preferred fish species in India due to various know factors such as nutritional values and taste of the flesh. One of the key factors, that the farmers hesitate to propagate this species through aquaculture, is the difficulty involved in seed production and their availability. It is worth mentioning that, for both C. magur and H. fossilis captive breeding, the males are sacrificed to obtain spermatozoa. Also the problem associated with severe mortality of hatchlings during nursery rearing. In this article, we have discussed the breeding protocols of two commercially important catfish and possible strategies to overcome the problems associated with the breeding. It is anticipated that the article will be an eye opener for the entrepreneurs and farmers those who are intended to take up seed production of C. magur and H. fossilis. The strategies we discussed here will also implicate in sustainable conservation of these species and propagation.