Tilapia (pronounced /tɨˈlɑːpiə/) is the common name A common name is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with a scientific name. A common name is not necessarily a commonly used name, nor is it considered less correct than a scientific name (as "common" might imply) for nearly a hundred species In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are often used, such as similarity of DNA, morphology or of cichlid Cichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei along with the wrasses Labridae, damselfish Pomacentridae, and surfperches Embiotocidae. This family is both large and diverse. At least 1,300 species have been scientifically described, making it one of the largest fish A fish is any aquatic vertebrate animal that is covered with scales, and equipped with two sets of paired fins and several unpaired fins. Most fish are "cold-blooded", or ectothermic, allowing their body temperatures to vary as ambient temperatures change. Fish are abundant in most bodies of water. They can be found in nearly all aquatic from the tilapiine cichlid tribe In biology, a tribe — or infrafamily — is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes. Tilapia inhabit a variety of fresh water Freshwater or fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Freshwater is characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term specifically excludes seawater and habitats including shallow streams, ponds, rivers and lakes. Historically they have been of major importance in artisan fishing Artisan fishing is a term sometimes used to describe small scale commercial or subsistence fishing practises. The term particularly applies to coastal or island ethnic groups using traditional techniques such as rod and tackle, arrows and harpoons, throw nets and drag nets, and maybe traditional fishing boats. It does not usually cover the concept in Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people (as of 2009, see table) in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.72% of the world's human population and the Levant The Levant (Arabic: بلاد الشام‎ Bilād aš-Šām, also known as Arabic: المشرق‎ al-Māšriq, am-Māšriq) describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly and are of increasing importance in aquaculture Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the harvesting of wild fish. Mariculture refers to aquaculture (see tilapia in aquaculture Tilapia has become the third most important fish in aquaculture after carps and salmonids, with production reaching 1,505,804 metric tons in 2002. Because of their large size, rapid growth, and palatability, a number of tilapiine cichlids are at the focus of major aquaculture efforts, specifically various species of Oreochromis, Sarotherodon, and). Tilapia can become problematic invasive species "Invasive species", or Invasive Exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions in new warm-water habitats, whether deliberately or accidentally introduced An introduced, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its native distributional range, which has arrived there by human activity, either deliberate or accidental. Some introduced species are damaging to the ecosystem they are introduced into, others negatively affect agriculture but generally not in temperate climates due to their inability to survive in cool waters, generally below 60 °F (16 °C). (See tilapia as exotic species A number of tilapiine cichlids that are native to Africa and the Levant have been widely introduced into tropical fresh and brackish waters around the world. In some cases, the introductions were deliberate, for example to control invasive aquatic plants, as in the U.S. states of Florida and Texas. Across much of Asia and Africa they have been).

Etymology

The common name tilapia is based on the name of the cichlid Cichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei alongside the wrasses Labridae, damselfish Pomacentridae, and surfperches Embiotocidae. The family Cichlidae is both large and diverse. There are at least 1,300 scientifically described species, making it one of the genus In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank (a taxon) used in the classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender", cognate with Greek: γένος – genos, "race, stock, kin" Tilapia, which is itself a latinization of thiape, the Tswana Tswana , is a Bantu language written in the Latin alphabet. English is the national and majority language of Botswana, whose people are the Batswana (singular Motswana). Although English is the official language of Botswana, the majority of speakers also understand Setswana. There are also speakers in Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa word for "fish".^[1] Scottish Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. In addition to the mainland, Scotland zoologist Zoology , occasionally also spelt zoölogy, is the branch of biology that focuses on the structure, function, behavior, and evolution of animals Andrew Smith named the genus in 1840 Year 1840 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar).^[2]

Tilapia go by many names. The moniker "St. Peter's fish" comes from the story in the Christian Bible The Bible refers to the sacred scriptures of Judaism and Christianity, usually compiled in a single volume. The Hebrew Bible contains 39 books. The Christian Bible adds to the Hebrew Bible some 27 more books, giving a total of about 66 books about the apostle Peter Simon Peter , sometimes called Simon Cephas (Greek: Σιμων Κηφᾶς, Symōn Kēphas; Aramaic: Šimʕōn Kêfâ‎; Syriac: ܫܡܥܘܢ ܟܐܦܐ, Sëmʕān Kêfâ) after his name in Hellenized Aramaic, was a leader of the early Christian Church, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. Peter was catching a fish that carried a shekel Shekel , is any of several ancient units of weight or of currency. The first usage is from Mesopotamia around 3000 BC. Initially, it may have referred to a weight of barley (the first syllable "she" was Akkadian for barley[citation needed]). This shekel was about 180 grains (11 grams or .35 troy ounces) coin in its mouth, though the passage does not name the fish.^[3] While the name also applies to Zeus faber, a marine fish not found in the area, a few tilapia species (Sarotherodon galilaeus galilaeus and others) are found in the Sea of Galilee The Sea of Galilee, also Lake of Gennesaret, Lake Kinneret, Sea of Tiberias or Tiberias Lake , located near the Golan Heights, is the largest freshwater lake in Israel, and it is approximately 53 km (33 miles) in circumference, about 21 km (13 miles) long, and 13 km (8 miles) wide. The lake has a total area of 166 km², and a maximum depth of, where the author of the Gospel of Matthew accounts the event took place. These species have been the target of small-scale artisanal fisheries Artisan fishing is a term sometimes used to describe small scale commercial or subsistence fishing practises. The term particularly applies to coastal or island ethnic groups using traditional techniques such as rod and tackle, arrows and harpoons, throw nets and drag nets, and maybe traditional fishing boats. It does not usually cover the concept in the area for thousands of years.^[4][5] In some Asian Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population. During the 20th century Asia's population nearly quadrupled countries including the Philippines The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas), is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam. The Sulu Sea to the southwest lies between the country and the island of Borneo, and, large tilapia go by pla-pla while their smaller brethren are just tilapia.

Fish farming

Tilapia is the third most important fish in fish farming Fish farming is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under mariculture. Fish farming involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases juvenile fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species' natural numbers is generally referred to as a fish after carps Carp is a common name for various species of an oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. The cypriniformes is traditionally grouped with the Characiformes, Siluriformes and Gymnotiformes to create the superorder Ostariophysi, since these groups have certain common features such as being and salmonids Salmonidae is a family of ray-finned fish, the only living family currently placed in the order Salmoniformes. It includes salmon, trout, chars, freshwater whitefishes and graylings. The Atlantic salmon and trout of genus Salmo give the family and order their names, with production reaching 1,505,804 metric tons in 2002.^[6] Because of their large size, rapid growth, and palatability, tilapiine cichlids are the focus of major farming efforts, specifically various species of Oreochromis, Sarotherodon, and Tilapia, collectively known colloquially as tilapias. Like other large fish, they are a good source of protein Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and folded into a globular form. The amino acids in a polymer are joined together by the peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid residues. The sequence of amino acids in a protein is defined by the sequence of a gene, which is encoded and popular among artisanal An artisan is a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative, including furniture, clothing, jewellery, household items, and tools. The term can also be used as an adjective to refer to the craft of hand making food products, such as bread, beverages and cheese and commercial fisheries Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising and/or harvesting fish, which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats, purpose of the activities or a. Most such fisheries were originally found in Africa, but outdoor fish farms in tropical countries such as Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Indonesia are underway in freshwater lakes.^[7] In temperate zone In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally mild, rather than extreme hot or cold. But in continental areas, such as central North America the variations between summer and winter can be extreme. In regions traditionally localities, tilapiine farming operations require energy to warm the water to tropical temperatures. One method uses waste heat from factories and power stations A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power.^[8]

Commercially grown tilapia are almost exclusively male. Cultivators use hormones such as testosterone Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other vertebrates. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands. It is the principal male sex hormone and an anabolic steroid to reverse the sex of newly spawned females. Because tilapia are prolific breeders, the presence of female tilapia results in rapidly increasing populations of small fish, rather than a stable population of harvest-size animals.^[9]

Whole tilapia fish can be processed into skinless, boneless (PBO) fillets: the yield is from 30 percent to 37 percent, depending on fillet size and final trim.^[10] The use of tilapia in the commercial food industry has led to the virtual extinction of genetically pure bloodlines. Most wild tilapia today are hybrids of several species.

Nutrition

Tilapia have very low levels of mercury^[11] as they are fast-growing and short-lived with a primarily vegetarian diet, and thus do not accumulate mercury found in prey.^[12] Tilapia is a low saturated fat, low calorie, low carbohydrate and low sodium protein source. It is a source of phosphorus Phosphorus is the chemical element that has the symbol P and atomic number 15. A multivalent nonmetal of the nitrogen group, phosphorus is commonly found in inorganic phosphate rocks. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms – white phosphorus and red phosphorus. Although the term "phosphorescence", meaning glow after, niacin Niacin is an organic compound with the formula C5H4NCO2H and, depending on the definition used, one of the between forty to eighty essential human nutrients. This colourless, water-soluble solid is a derivative of pyridine, with a carboxyl group (COOH) at the 3-position. Other forms of vitamin B3 include the corresponding amide, nicotinamide (&, selenium Selenium is a chemical element with the atomic number 34, represented by the chemical symbol Se, an atomic mass of 78.96. It is a nonmetal, chemically related to sulfur and tellurium, and rarely occurs in its elemental state in nature, vitamin B12 Vitamin B12, vitamin B12 or vitamin B-12, also called cobalamin, is a water soluble vitamin with a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system, and for the formation of blood. It is one of the eight B vitamins. It is normally involved in the metabolism of every cell of the human body, especially affecting DNA synthesis and and potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (Latin: kalium, from Arabic: القَلْيَه‎ al-qalyah "plant ashes" cf. Alkali from the same root, more commonly known in Modern Standard Arabic as بوتاسيوم ‹bwtasywm›), atomic number 19, and atomic mass 39.0983. Potassium was first isolated from potash. Elemental.

However, farm raised tilapia Tilapia has become the third most important fish in aquaculture after carps and salmonids, with production reaching 1,505,804 metric tons in 2002. Because of their large size, rapid growth, and palatability, a number of tilapiine cichlids are at the focus of major aquaculture efforts, specifically various species of Oreochromis, Sarotherodon, and (the least expensive and most popular) has a high fat content (though low in saturated fats). According to research published in July 2008, farm raised tilapia may be worse for the heart than eating bacon or a hamburger. The research suggests the nutritional value of farm raised tilapia may be compromised by the amount of corn Maize , known in many English-speaking countries as corn, is a grass domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The Aztecs and Mayans cultivated it in numerous varieties throughout central and southern Mexico, to cook or grind in a process called nixtamalization. Later the crop spread through much of the Americas included in the feed. The corn contains short chain omega-6s that contribute to the buildup of these materials in the fish. "Ratios of long-chain omega-6 n−6 fatty acids are a family of unsaturated fatty acids that have in common a final carbon–carbon double bond in the n−6 position, that is, the sixth bond, counting from the end opposite the carboxyl group [citation needed] to long-chain omega-3 n−3 fatty acids are a family of unsaturated fatty acids that have in common a final carbon–carbon double bond in the n−3 position; that is, the third bond from the methyl end of the fatty acid, AA to EPA respectively, in tilapia averaged about 11:1, compared to much less than 1:1 (indicating more EPA than AA) in both salmon and trout." Wide spread publicity encouraging people to eat more fish has seen tilapia being purchased by those with lower incomes who are trying to eat a well balanced diet. The lower amounts of omega-3 and the higher ratios of omega-6 compounds in US farmed tilapia raise questions of the health benefits of consuming this fish.^[13]

Adequate diets for salmon and other carnivorous fish can alternatively be formulated from protein sources such as soy The soybean or soya bean (UK) (Glycine max) is a species of legume native to East Asia. The plant is classed as an oilseed rather than a pulse. It is an annual plant that has been used in China for 5,000 years to primarily add nitrogen into the soil as part of crop rotation, although soy-based diets may also change in the balance between omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids.^[14]

Exotic species

Tilapia are unable to survive in low temperate climates because they require warm water. The pure strain of the Blue Tilapia, Oreochromis aureus, has the greatest cold tolerance and dies at 45 °F (7 °C) while all other species of tilapia will die at a range of 52 °F (11 °C)-62 °F (17 °C). As a result, they cannot invade temperate habitats and disrupt native ecologies in temperate zones; however, they have spread widely beyond their points of introduction in many fresh and brackish tropical and subtropical habitats, often disrupting native species significantly.^[15] Because of this, tilapia are on the IUCN's 100 of the World's Worst Alien Invasive Species list.^[16] In the United States, tilapia can live only in extreme southern Florida and a few other isolated areas such as power plant discharge zones. Many state fish and wildlife agencies in the United States, Australia, South Africa and elsewhere consider them an invasive species "Invasive species", or Invasive Exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions.^[17]

Uses other than supplying food

Tilapia serve as a natural, biological control for most aquatic plant problems. Tilapia consume floating aquatic plants, such as duckweed Duckweeds, or water lentils, are aquatic plants which float on or just beneath the surface of still or slow-moving fresh water bodies. They arose from within the arum or aroid family, , and therefore, often are classified as the subfamily Lemnoideae within the Araceae. Classifications created prior to the approximate end of the twentieth century watermeal (Lemna sp.), most "undesirable" submerged plants, and most forms of algae.^[18] In the United States and countries such as Thailand, Tilapia are becoming the plant control method of choice, reducing/eliminating the use of toxic chemicals and heavy metal-based algaecides.

Tilapia rarely compete with other "pond" fish for food. Instead, because tilapia consume plants and nutrients unused by other fish species and substantially reduce oxygen depleting detritus, adding tilapia often increases the population, size and health of other fish.

Arizona stocks tilapia in the canals that serve as the drinking water sources for the cities of Phoenix, Mesa and others. The fish help purify the water by consuming vegetation and detritus, greatly reducing purification costs.

Arkansas stocks many public ponds and lakes to help with vegetation control, favoring tilapia as a robust forage species and for anglers.

In Kenya tilapia help control mosquitoes which cause malaria. They consume mosquito larvae, which reduces the numbers of adult females, the disease’s vector.^[19]

Tilapia also provide an abundant food source for aquatic predators.

In aquaria

Larger tilapia species are generally viewed as poor community aquarium fish because they eat plants, dig up the bottom, and fight with other fish. However, tilapia are often raised in aquariums as a food source due to their rapid growth and tolerance for high stocking densities and poor water quality. The smaller West African species, such as Tilapia joka and those species from the crater lakes of Cameroon, are more popular. In specialized cichlid aquaria tilapias can be mixed successfully with non-territorial cichlids, armoured catfish, tinfoil barbs, garpike and other robust but peaceful fish. Some species, including Tilapia buttikoferi, Tilapia rendalli,Tilapia mariae, Tilapia joka and the brackish-water Sarotherodon melanotheron melanotheron, have attractive patterns and are quite decorative.^[20]

See also

• Tilapia in aquaculture

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