A study on the gastro-intestinal helminth parasites of wild C. gariepinus was carried out in Gwagwalada Area Council of FCT, Abuja, Nigeria. A total of 110 samples were examined which includes 42 males and 68 females. Forty-eight (43,64%) fishes were infected with various species of helminth, which includes Wenyonia spp (28,18%), Procamallanus laevionchus (11,82%) and Euclinostomum heterostomum (3,64%). The female fish had the highest percentage prevalence (28,18%) while the males had 15,46% prevalence. Most of the parasites were recovered from the intestinal lumen. There was some degree of specificity in their distribution within the host but there was no significant difference (P>0,05) between the standard length, body weight, number of fish infected, prevalence and the intensity of infection.KEY WORDSHelminth parasites, Wild, C. gariepinus, Gastro-intestinal tract, Gwagwalada

Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, (Linneaus, 1758) is an important aquaculture species in Nigeria and other parts of the world. We obtained specimens (3,5-13,00 cm total length; 1,7 to 49 g) from Jabi Reservoir, Nigeria, and exposed them to 18-38o C. The frequency of opercular beats (i.e.respiratory rate) was determined from videos. At room temperature (28o C), the average frequency of opercular beats per minute for the weight groups of 1, 7 – 3,3; 4,0 – 7,0; 11,0 – 20 and 40 – 49g were 218, 190, 167 and 119 respectively. It decreased to 153, 137, 94 and 77 beats respectively when the water temperature was lowered to 18o C. It subsequently increased to 283, 267, 209 and 136 beats respectively when water temperature was raised to 38o C (p<0, 05).

Schistosomiasis is a neglected infectious disease that is endemic in resource-constrained settings. Nigeria has the highest cases of schistosomiasis in sub-Sahara Africa with about 29 million infected. This study was carried out with the aim to identify some risk factors of schistosomiasis and as well assess the efficacy of some urine physical parameters for a rapid screening procedure. Terminal urine samples were collected, analyzed with reagent strips and centrifuged at 400 revolution per minute for 4 minutes. Microscope (x10 objective) was used to examine and count the eggs. Raw data were imported into Epi Info software (version 7.1.2.0) from Microsoft Excel 2010 for analyses. About 357 respondents with a mean age of 9.39±2.06 years were sampled. Overall prevalence and intensity were 10.36% (7.61-13.96) and 322.2 eggs/10ml of urine samples respectively. Males had a higher prevalence [15.42% (10.86-20.97)] and mean intensity [77.5 eggs/10ml] and were 6 times more likely to be infected [COR (95% CI): 6.31 (2.17-25.09)]. Age group 11-15 years recorded higher prevalence (19.39% [12.10-28.61]) and intensity (110.9 eggs/10ml) and was 3 times [COR (95% CI): 3.21 (1.51-6.84)] more likely to be infected. Urine samples with faint yellow colour recorded the highest prevalence of 13.67% (8.43-20.52) and were 4 times [COR (95% CI): 4.33 (1.12-28.39)] more liable to infestation compared to the colourless samples. Age and gender are risk factors with faint yellow colour as the only reliable rapid diagnostic index. Provision of potable water and treatment with Praziquantel should be done urgently.

The high cost of Maize as energy source in fish feed has necessitated the need to search for low cost and locally available indigenous sources. A six months feeding trial was conducted to examine the effects of replacing maize with roasted rice chaff as a dietary energy source on the growth of juveniles of Clarias gariepinus using Completely Randomized block Design with five different treatments. The fishes were subjected to five different inclusion levels of roasted rice chaff meal (0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%). The trial was conducted in a 50litres plastic bowl with replicates and feeding was done initially at 3% body weight, but the quantity of feeds was adjusted based on the new weight gain. The measurements of the fishes were carried out biweekly according to standard methods and procedures. The Roasted rice chaff meal (RRCM) contains 5.93% crude protein, 14.53% crude fibre, 0.92% moisture content, while Ash content, crude lipid and carbohydrates had 19.98%, 3.28% and 55.36% respectively. Fishes fed 100% RRCM recorded the best growth performance in body weight (435.10 ± 20.60gm), total length (45.30 ± 0.70cm), Specific growth rate (1.44 ± 0.01), Feed Conversion Ratio (2.50 ± 0.04) and Feed Intake (92.00 ± 3.40). While the least growth ware observed in 0% RRCM. However, all the physico-chemical parameters measured are within the recommended range for fish culture. Therefore, the result obtained shows that roasted rice chaff can replace maize as a source of energy in Clarias gariepinus.juveniles diets without any negative effect.