Description

The Red Tilapia, is a member of the Cichlid and Tilapia or Cichlidae Family that is also known as the Florida Red Tilapia and Red Yumbo and in Mexico as tilapia rojo. It is a hybrid of the Blue Tilapia and the Mozambique Tilapia, Orepchromis mossambicus, that has been developed as food fish. Globally, there are 32 species in the genus Oreochromis, 4 of which are found in the majority of freshwater systems within Mexico. The red tilapia, Oreochromis sp., is increasing in popularity among producers due to its attractive color, increased marketability and high salinity tolerance in some strains. The red tilapia has replaced the Nile tilapia as the tilapia of choice among producers in Colombia (Gonzalez, 1997) and Jamaica (Carberry and Hanley, 1997) because of demand by domestic consumers. Red tilapias are cultured in the Philippines where the market price per kilogram is twice that of the more widely cultured Nile tilapia.

Characteristics:

The Red Tilapia has an overall “bluegill” profile with a body that are more deeply compressed than other tilapias. Pure bread species are a uniform red color and pinkish ventrally, but fade to a reddish-white upon death. They have a small head and mid-sized eyes. Their anal fin has 3 spines and 9 or 10 rays; their caudal fin is rounded; and, their dorsal fin has 15 to 18 spines and 10 to 13 rays with a long base. They have 16 to 22 gill rakers on their first arch and their lateral line is interrupted. Their body is covered with cycloid scales. The Red Tilapia reaches a maximum 38 cm (15 inches) in length and 4.3 kg (9.5 lbs) in weight. They are very tolerant of brackish waters and of temperatures between 13^oC (55^oF) and 37^oC (98^oF). They are opportunistic omnivores consuming diatoms, invertebrates, small fry, and vegetation ranging from macroalgae to rooted plants to decaying plant material. They are active diurnally. Their behavioral patterns are not well documented but they are assumed to be very similar to or identical to the Blue Tilapia and the Mozambique Tilapia from which they are derived.

Taxonomy:

Taiwanese red tilapia: a cross between a mutant reddish-orange female O. mossambicus and a normal male O. niloticus in 1960s (Galman and Avtalion 1983). Florida red tilapia strain: a normal colored O. hornorum female crossed with a red-gold male O. mossambicus in the 1970s (Behrends et al., 1982). Israel red tilapia strain: red Nile tilapia originating from Egypt crossed with wild-type Blue tilapia

Farming:

For the culture of Red Tilapia different farming systems can be used, i.e., Mixed-sex culture, Male monosex culture, Polyculture, Integrated culture. Mixed-sex Cultures are cultured together and harvested before or soon after they reach sexual maturity, so recruitment and overcrowding can be minimized. Because of short period of culture limitation in size of fish (Rakocy and McGinty, 1989). Male monosex culture: Males of Red Tilapia grow faster than females so only males are used for culture. In Male monosex culture we can culture male Tilapia for longer periods, at higher stocking rates and fingerlings of any age. Expected survival for all-male culture is 90 percent or greater. A disadvantage of male monosex culture is that female fingerlings are discarded (Rakocy and McGinty, 1989). Polyculture: Red Tilapia can be cultured with other species to take advantage of natural foods available in ponds. In Polyculture combination of different species which feeds on different feeding niches are cultured to increase overall production without increase in the quantity of supplemental feed. Tian et al. (2001) investigated the water quality in a closed polyculture system containing Chinese penaeid shrimp (Penaeus chinensis) with Taiwanese Red Tilapia (O. mossambicus x O. niloticus) and constricted tagelus (Sinonovacula constricta). Polyculture can improve water quality by creating a better balance among the microbial communities of the pond, resulting in enhanced production. Polyculture of shrimp with Red Tilapias may provide an opportunity to develop a sustainable aquaculture system