Effects of Dietary Supplementation of Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) Seed on Milt Quality of African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Broodstocks

Abstract

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) was introduced into Nigeria in the early 8 th century by the Arab traders from north Africa, where it is traded in exchange with the dry leaves of Henna plant (Lawsonia inermins), a plant known to be widely used for body decoration by women in many parts of the world. Date fruits are highly valued delicacy among many communities in Nigeria and enjoy a great spiritual and cultural significance (FAO, 2003). Similarly Chao & Krueger (2007) reported that date palm tree has numerous usages and economic importance in ecological improvement of the deserts. Many studies have shown that antioxidants can ABSTRACT Purpose: The effects of Phoenix dactylifera seed powder on milt quality of Clarias gariepinus was investigated. The purpose of the research were to determine the effects of dietary supplementation of P. dactylifera seed meal on the milt quality of African catfish, C. gariepinus; and to examine the effects of the dietary supplementation of P. dactylifera seed meal on the histology of the testes. Research Method: Five diets with crude protein of 40% were formulated with different inclusion levels of 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0g date palm/100g of diet. 75 male C. gariepinus broodstocks (327.26 ± 8.61g) were randomly distributed in triplicate into 15 concrete tanks at stocking density of 5 fish per tank for 70 days. Findings: Reproductive performance indices and milt quality parameters were determined at the end of the feeding trial. There was no significant differences (P<0.05) in the weight of testes, gonadosomatic index and weight gain in fish in all the experimental diets. The milt count (102.40 x 10 4 spz/ml ± 0.87) and motility duration (60.70s ± 0.13 seconds) were highest in fish fed diet PDSP 4 (1.5g date palm/100g diet) and PDSP 5 (2.0g date palm/100g). The percentage motility was highest in fish fed PDSP 5 at (2.0g date palm/100g diet). Research limitations: The limitation of this research was the unavailability of funds to extend this research in order to carry out more investigation using other culturable fish species. Value of the Research: The study revealed that dietary supplementation of P. dactylifera seed powder at 2.0g/100g diet significantly increased milt quality of C. gariepinus broodstocks.

Immunostimulatory Effect of Phoenix Dactylifera Supplemented Diet on Aeromonas hydrophila Infected Clarias gariepinus

“…The positive trend of immunostimulation demonstrated by fish on date enriched diet is an indication that date fruit possesses the ability to aid digestion of feed for effective utilization without detrimental effects [12]. The current result agrees with previous findings, where P. dactylifera fruit exhibited growth-promoting effects [26,27].…”

Dietary Effects of Desmodium (Desmodium adscendens) Leaves on the Reproductive Indices in African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Broodstock

“…Motility of the spermatozoan is the most commonly used indicator of milt quality since high motility is a prerequisite for fertilization and correlates strongly with fertilization success (Rurangwa et al, 2001). Percentage motility recorded in this study is similar to result of Dada and Fagbohun, (2018) using Date palm seed powder on C. gariepinus male bloodstock. There was significant difference in the percentage motility of sperm in the experimental fish across different treatment.…”

Dietary Effects of Almond (Prunus amygdalus dulcis) Seed Powder on the Reproductive Indices in Male African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Broodstock

“…However, there are limitations associated with fry production and the development of better broodstock management techniques which is important for improvement of fry yield. The evergrowing demand for the seed of African catfish C. gariepinus calls for more production of highquality milt which could be used to fertilize the eggs in the hatchery [4]. Hence, the increase in research into various ways of improving the reproductive ability of fish in order to meet the growing demands for fish and fish product.…”