Hypophysatlon or Induced Spawning
_ , d velo and adopt this technique . as e~rly as 1934. w·
rRrazjllwas the first cou~try to k e :plied thi s technique successfully in 1962, a1te""t rn 1th
respect t~ major carps, Indian war ers a any
years of research. . .
th · f ituitary hormones in the form o1 pituitary ext
The_basis of t11is techni~ue Is e L~sse ~!Ing recent years along with the pi1uita ry ext~!~
in!ect~on to stimulate the maturation of ~~~~ a~ Human chorionic_gon adot~oQin powder (HCG) an~
in1ect1on , !he use of synt11et1c hormJnre(56-6100), has been increasing for 1n~uct1on of spawning in
Salmon itu,tary gona~ot~o in t~wd e_s that the sacrifice of donor fish for p1tu1tary extract can te
fish . The a vantage o t 1s me o 1 , .
avoided. ·
The method of breeding indian major carps by pituitary ext~a~t or hypophysation technique
has been reviewed · in detail by Jhingran (1975). A _general description of procedure used ,s as
follows.
(I) Selection of Breeders
The prerequisite for successful induced spawning is the selection of healthy brooders tha~
are~ ~ lly collected from lakes, reservoirs or commercial ponds. The spawners shoul_d weig~ mere
tha 2 k l and should have ripe gonads . The male and female breeders are checked in for in1ury G:
any I ease symptoms. It is advisable to give spawners a 15 minute bath in 5% NaCl solution. in
order to destroy ectoparasites, specially, the Dactylogyrus which is very dangerous for young fry. A
male Indian major carp can easily be distinguished from the female during breeding season by th€
roughness of dorsal surface of its pectoral fin ,_compared to smooth surface of the female . Further
more, female have soft bulging rounded abdom·en with swollen reddish vent, while males are more
slender. Further in tipe males, miltoozes out when the abdomen- is gently pressed. Both male ana
female brooders are given protein rich diet such as ground nut oil cake and rice bran in the ratio ci
1:1 at the rate of 1% of their body weight._Overfeeding, however, should be avoided since it may
cause the fish to develop adipose tissue round the g'onads, thus· hindering the development of eggs
and sperms. The ponds, in which brooders are kept, should have cle·a n and constant discharae cf
water which prevent overheating of water. The wate·r level should not drop less than one mete·r~
(ii) Preparati_on of pituitary extract
. · Pituitary ·gl~nds are r~moved ~r?m sexually matured carps. The ef~ect of pituitary gland c,"
gonad ~evel_opment 1s not _species spec1f1c and thus pituitary of one species can effectively stimulate
maturation in oth~r spe~1es. If the pituitary extract of the same species is used, it · is called
. LhQm.Qp~c.l a nd if th e pituitary gland of a different species of the· same family or related family 15
used rt is called~ oplastic.\ Glands collected from freshly killed specimens are more effective than
~::::~:~~=d8 °;;; a~t~; ;~~v!r'~~ge amount of the gland is required, the glarids can be stored ;h:
. preservative solution should . be cha~ glands ;hou_ ld be pl~ced in ab$olute alcohol or acet~ tion,
glands are stored in brown bottles an~e1 sev __ral times for complete dehydration . After dehydrand is
done by dissecting the skull with a sha; akc~1 in a cool place _o~ in a refrig~rato r. Remo~al of glads bY
means of a fine f?rcep (Fig. lS.?). P ni e or hand saw, lifting the brain, and removin g glan
j
t
?I TU/l,4,1<. Y
GL A 1,.,1./)
Fig. 15.7 Rernova~ of pituitary gland (From, S~nthanum ~t al, 1987)
.
While using fresh or acetone .dr:ied gland, the requisite ·quantity of
gland is groun d into
homogenous paste in a porcelain mortar with a few drops of distilled
water or 65°/o saline soh.rtion.
Any insoluble particles in the maceration uf gland should be removed either
throug h centri fugati on or
settling. The super natan t liquid is drawn into a hypodermic syringe.
The injection is -usual ly given
(intramuscular,\~-3 cm }deep) at the caudal peduncle or at the ·axil or pelvic
fin or on the back near 1st
ray of dorsal fin: The dose of pituitary extract depends on .the age, weight,
and state of maturrty of
spawners. It is essenti~I to ascertain a correct dos·e for satisfactory results
.
Accor ding fo the recent studies on Indian major carps in India, th.e recom
mende d .dose of
.the female is about 8· -10 mg of gland per kilogram of body weight.while
male r~quire on• a single
dose d 2-4 ·mg/kg of body weigh t The female is given two doses, ·namel
y,@) a stimulating dose of
2-3 mg/kg of its body weight, after an interv~I of six hour~ a second dose or resolving dose.of 6-8
mg/kg body weight. The male, on the other hand, is given only a single
d~se of the extrac t at a rate of
3-4 mg/kg of body weigh t.
The extern al factor s such as light, temperature, and weather conditions
that play impor tant
role in the induce ment of spawning in carps have . been reviewed
in detail by Jhingr an (1975) .
Prolonged photo period ic regime often results into early· maturation
and spawning. Studies with
respect to the role of tempe rature on the maturation of gonads and breedi
ng ot fish reveal that there
are_optimum tempe rature ranges for induced spawning of culturable species _
a~d critical limits , ac?ove
Which .fish will not spawn . Indian major carps have be~n fou~d to breed
within a range of\24 ~ to
~ Beyo·nd these limits fishes do not spawn. Besides, ltght and tempe
rature, meteo rologic al
conditions have also been obser ved· to influence the carps. Successful
spawning in majority of carps
has been induced on cloudy an·d rainy days. · · · ·. ·
tern t ·
n , the ref ore , sh ou ld coincide with required pe ra ure and we.ather
The timing of inj ectio d ing (BO _ B.O
.. H ·t . f
to
.
inj ec t
.
las t do se_. to brooders in late even p.m.) on
co nd1tIons. en ce 1 ,~
pre err e
sa tis fac tor y res ult s. The induc ed b reed'ing may b
nth s for e
so me clo ud y da y, durin g mons qo· n mo · · al sp aw nin g erther in net en cIosures ca /led
·t· · I f ·1 · · pp1h g) or na tur
b y a rt I rc, a . ert., Iza_tIon (1.e. stn
to II owe d Cl ·
.
, pa ,. or 1Ines e type circular ha tch ery .
ha
(iii). St rippi ng
erm s out of th f
the me tho d of ac tua lly pushing eggs or sp e ish
m given to
_ . St rip p ing is the ter
dis h .
an d m rxrng th ern in a
The female when
ke pt in s~ pa rate spawning tanks .
Af te r the injec tio n, bo
th se xe s are
res tlessness and dashes
around
, sh ow s sin gs of
last qose
t 6-.10 h? urs aft er the ale is·.gently pressed ,
if the eggs
r~ ad y !o sp aw n ab ou of eggs , the ·be lly of the fem
To co nfirm ripeness stripping. It is, therefore
, advisable to
wi ldl y in wa . te r. . . fem ale is rip e for
for m of beads, the day, in early morning
~xt. ru d ~ ou t ~as11y 111 the so tha t str ipp ing ca n be carried ou t next ·
late ev en ing
1n1ect _f,~al do se rn the ··
wh en ,t ts co ol.
and slime with a
sh ou ld be wi pe d and cle an ed of water
sp aw ne rs ped first
Be for e stripping , the g the str ipp ing pro ce ss. Th e female is ·strip
du rin
av oid clu mp ing of eg gs plastic bowl. Soon aft
er, the male is
pa pe r tow el so as to en
_ am ell ed tra y or
lle cte d in a da mp en ed rou gh ly mi xe d with a
feather. The whole
an d the eg gs a re co ar e ge ntl y an d tho
; the m ilt an d eg gs re should
str ipp ed on th~ eg gs dir ec t su nli gh t ·is de trimental to spawn. Ca
ce
p ro ce ss sh o uld be ca
rrie d out unde r sh ad e sin no t ac co mp an ied by blood, mu
cous or gu t
ar e cle an ah d
ing tha t ·se x pr od uc ts eggs. Th e )fecundity of
Indian major
. be tak en du rin g str ipp ou gh for on e litr e of_
co nte nts . 3- 5 c. c: of
milt is co ns ide re d en s of tho us an ds to two
million eggs .
of fis h, va rie s fro ~ ten
the size an d ag e
ca rp s , de pe nd ing on
n is transferre d
·or bo wl (w ith in 5 to 10 mi nu tes ), the spaw
in th e dish eggs in motio n.
So on after. fertil ization of wa ter is ma·intained to keep the
ad y flo w
tank wh ere a ste anlines s, and g_entle
to a c irc ula r inc ubation um flu ctu ati on in wa ter tem pe ra tur e cle
en .c01, tent, m ini m rmal wate r
Hig h dis so / 1e d ox yg
1
cc es sfu l ha tch ing . Un de r c_~nditions of no
es se ntial fac to rs for su the larvae are swept by
water flow to
mo ve me nt of w ate r are urs . Af ter ha tch ing
ce in ab ou t 10 -15 ho
flo w, ha tc~ ing tak es pla . ·
y tan k' for ini tial nurs ing
a ne a rb y rece iving ha tch er which are
ct~ res of ab ou t 1.5 x 3 x 6 m dir:nensions
ar e cc nc re te str u
_
· Th e ha tcr. er y tanks iings. Th e tan ks
.. run nin g wa ter be for e receiving the hatch
2 wi r2 br us h and pe rat ure of water
tho ro1 10 hlv cle an ed with d to dir ec t sunlight. Th e tem
s:1 ou ld be ke pt we ll ae rat ed an d sh ou id no t be ex po se
pth sh ou ld no t ex ce ed 0.5m. !t 15
.
31 °c. Th e wa ter de
within ran ge of 23 - fertilized .eggs are lar
ge , milky,
sh ould be ma intain ed he lp of sip ho ns . Th e
importa nt to re mo ve
inf ert ile eg gs with the •flo wi? h op aq ue an d solid in
consisten cy .
gs ar e sm all , ye
le, wh er ea s inf ert ile eg the y ar e about 4-- 4.5
mm long <1 'id
trc:tns paren t an d fle xib wi th the ir yo lk sa c, 0
ha tch lin gs co me ou t of the eggs c, for firs t tw o o
t_ th: ee d Y~
W hen the lk, pr es en t in yolk sa
ve me n t. Th ey su bs ist on yo en sw,ri m,ng along
pe rfo rm ny itc hin g mo
ik sa cs ar e ab so rb ed_an d lar va e are se
r hm ch ing, the yo ll pre parP ci
Abou~ 0 !Cl ·+ days -:1fte y mu st im me dia tel y be transferred to we
food henc e the
the 5111tace of t2 rk in c: pa rch of
nurc;f-!, r.: ,. ,., d I '~ st b e ,1~d at once.
__., 1 s u r: ,
