Efficacy of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and crude pituitary extract of fish and frog in oocyte maturation and ovulation in African catfish, Clarias gariepinus Burchell, 1822 and Clarias anguillaris L., 1762

Abstract. The African catfish, Clarias gariepinus Burchell and Clarias anguillaris L., were induced to ovulate in aquaria by the administration of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and pituitary extracts of Clarias albopunctatus (Nichols & Lamonte) and frog, Rana elegans. For final maturation and ovulation in both species of Clarias , the total dosage of each hormone was inversely proportional to the initial oocyte diameters of the recipient females. The time of ovulation after the last injection (latent period) was significantly shorter (11–13h) in females with large oocyte diameters (>920μm) than in those whose mean oocyte diameters were less than 920 μm (13–16h) ( P < 0·05). The mean dosage of each test hormone required to induce ovulation was lower in females with large oocyte diameters than in those with smaller oocyte diameters (<920μm). The mean percentage hatch did not depend significantly on the nature of the treatment ( P > 0μ05) and was about 86%. Clarias albopunclatus and R. elegans , which are economically unimportant and abundant in Anambra River basin, Nigeria, could be used as effective sources of hypophyseal factors in Clarias breeding programmes.