Further Experiments With Tilapia Mossambica As A Pondfish

Ponds stocked April 30 with 80 Tilapia mossambica per acre and drained October 16 produced in the 170-day experiment 1,480.9 pounds tilapia per acre in a fertilized pond and 3,224 pounds per acre where feeding was added. Tilapia (1- to 2-inch) stocked into ponds June 13 reached 5 to 8 inches in size in 126 days. A 2.6-acre pond was stocked April 18-20 with 80 brood tilapia per acre. The pond was fertilized and the fish fed. Tilapia hatching in this pond grew large enough to provide fishing by August 1. In the first 2-week period of fishing, the catch per acre was 1,222 fish weighing 226 pounds. These fish feed upon plankton and filamentous algae and may be of value in ponds for the control of the latter.