Broodstock development, final oocyte maturation and breeding of the newly described sparid fish, Fanged seabream, Sparidentex jamalensis Amir, Siddiqui & Masroor, 2014

Broodstock development, induced maturation and breeding of the newly described seabream, Sparidentex jamalensis collected from Kali estuary, Karnataka, India were achieved successfully for the first time. Taxonomy of the fish was confirmed employing morphological and molecular tools. Majority of the brooders collected were in the 20-30 cm length class (140-510 g) and were ideal for developing matured broodstock. Periodic microscopic observation of ovarian biopsy indicated progressive gonadal development in the broodstock. The broodstock developed for this protandrous hermaphrodite consisted of females having maturing oocytes and males with oozing milt during the breeding season. Final maturation and spawning of the females (520 +/- 8 g; ova diameter above 400 mu m) was achieved using cholesterol-based LHRH analogue pellets (50 mu g/kg fish) and the males (450 +/- 54 g) were not treated with hormones. Pelagic fertilized eggs (720 +/- 8 mu m) with a single oil globule were obtained with an absolute fecundity of 0.42 +/- 0.06 million/kg fish and a fertilization rate of 82 +/- 2.4%. Major embryological stages were recorded and the fertilized eggs hatched after 18-20 hours with 80 +/- 4.6% hatching rate at 28 degrees C. The newly hatched planktonic larvae measured 1.8 +/- 0.12 mm in total length. Mouth opening of the larvae was observed on second day post hatch (dph). Resorption of the yolk sac was observed on third dph. These results will act as a baseline for developing a breeding programme for this species.