Abstract
Length-weight relationships (LWRs) and condition factor are important biological information to assess the growth pattern and wellbeing of fish species influenced by numerous abiotic and biotic factors. To date, no data on the LWRs and condition of mullets in Sombreior River, Niger Delta. Hence, this research was conducted to determine abundance, length–weight relationship and Fulton’s condition factor (K) of three species of fish belonging to family Mugilidae in Sombreior River, Nigeria. There were a total of 248 samples from five sampling stations for a period of months. Fish species were of various sizes ranging from 24.66±0.40 to 26.35±0.26cm in length and 141.41±6.30 to 161.56±5.87g in weight. For the three species, slope (b) values ranged from 2.18 to 2.68 indicating a negative allometric growth of all fish species. The mean condition factor ranged from 0.89±0.03 forsix Mugil cephalus to 0.93±0.03 for Parachelon grandisquamis while the coefficients of determination (R2) of the LWR regressions ranged between 0.64 (Neochelon falcipinnis) and 0.79 (Parachelon grandisquamis). It was concluded that the mullets in the Sombreior River had a negative allometric growth pattern and the condition is showing the species were in good state of well-being since mean K values are greater than 1.
Highlights
The Mugilidae family includes 17 genera and 72 valid species, which are found in freshwaters, estuaries, brackish water, hypersaline lagoons and coastal marine waters at shallow depths less than 20m. (Cardona, 2006)
Total Length (TL) and Standard Length (SL) of the specimens were taken with a calibrated measuring board in centimetre, and the Body Weight (BW) were measured in grams (g)
The mean condition factor ranged from 0.89±0.03 recorded for M. cephalus to 0.93±0.03 recorded for P. grandisquamis (Table 3)
Summary
The Mugilidae family includes 17 genera and 72 valid species, which are found in freshwaters, estuaries, brackish water, hypersaline lagoons and coastal marine waters at shallow depths less than 20m. (Cardona, 2006). The biological information on fish are important and efficient approaches for their management and preservation. Biological data such as body length and weight constitute necessary data to assess population structure (Froese, 2006). Condition factor is likewise a valuable guide to track feeding strength, stage, and growth rates in fish (Oni et al, 1983). This is highly affected by both biotic and abiotic conditions and can possibly serve as an index for determining the state of the aquatic environment of the fish (Anene, 2005). Condition factors of various tropical fish species were studied and stated
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