Gross Abnormalities in Tilapia

Abstract

Thirty-one gross abnormalities that have been observed in tilapia are described: 10 fin, five eye, five jaw, four body shape, three head, two yolk sac, one operculum, and conjoined twins. Twenty-one have been described in published papers; the others were obtained from a survey. Breeding experiments revealed that three were heritable, while six were not heritable. Five could be caused by a bacterial infection, and one could be produced by a fungus. Four deformities were in offspring of males that had been injected with methyl methane sulphonate. Three were produced when sperm was treated with methyl methane sulphonate. Six were observed during sex reversal studies, and one was found following heat shock of fertilized eggs. Three were observed in polluted river water. The cause of other deformities is not known.