Kamaruddin, I.S., A.S. Mustafa Kamal, A. Christianus, and S.K. Daud, (2010). Stomach fullness of fish population in Pengkalan Gawi – Pulau Dula Section of Kenyir Lake, Terengganu, Malaysia. Conservation and Sustainable Development: National Conference on Natural Resources (NCNR’10). Kota Baharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. Oral Presentation. 24pp.
STOMACH FULLNESS OF FISH POPULATION IN PENGKALAN GAWI– PULAU DULA SECTION OF TASIK KENYIR, TERENGGANU
Kamaruddin, I.S.,1 A.S. Mustafa Kamal,1* A. Christianus1 and S.K. Daud2
1Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture and 2Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
This study was conducted to determine the stomach fullness of fish population in Pengkalan Gawi – Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu. Fish samples were collected monthly from February 2008 to January 2009 (12 months) at three sampling stations designated as Station A (Pulau Dula), Station B (Sungai Ikan) and Station C (Pulau Pupi). Fish were collected using gillnets and were taxonomically identified into species before categorized according to stomach fullness level into 5 categories. Patong shows the highest mean values of stomach fullness with 3.40 ± 0.70. This were followed by Belida (3.00 ± 1.05), Temoleh (3.00 ± 0.00), Terbol (2.67 ± 0.58), Temperas (2.50 ± 1.29), Kawan (2.00 ± 0.00), Lalang (2.00 ± 0.00), Baung (1.91 ± 1.72), Sebarau (1.89 ± 1.71), Lampam sungai (1.65 ± 1.26), Toman (1.50 ± 1.78), Rong (1.50 ± 0.71) and Haruan (0.00 ± 0.00). These baseline data are hope to provide some useful inputs for fishery management in the lake.
STOMACH FULLNESS OF FISH POPULATION IN PENGKALAN GAWI– PULAU DULA SECTION OF TASIK KENYIR, TERENGGANU
Kamaruddin, I.S.,1 A.S. Mustafa Kamal,1* A. Christianus1 and S.K. Daud2
1Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
2Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
INTRODUCTION
Lakes and reservoirs comprise a significant portion of the available Malaysian freshwater aquatic resources, totalling about 1600 km2 (Yusoff and Gopinath, 1995). Tasik Kenyir is one of the reservoirs that provide important sources of freshwater fish to the people in Malaysia. However, the total freshwater fish catch in Malaysia including in Tasik Kenyir has been rapidly declining. Over-exploitation and habitat degradation, for example, have depleted the stocks and reduce the replacement rate in the population (Khan et al., 1996). Sustainable and suitable management programmes are needed in order to maintain the fish stock in Tasik Kenyir.
One of the key factors to successfully maintaining the fish population in lake is the understanding of some biological fundamental process of individual fish species. Many studies in understanding the biological fundamental process of fish have been focused on stomach contents including stomach fullness. The study of diet based on stomach analysis is a routine practice in fish ecology (Hyslop, 1980). Mean stomach fullness provides a useful index for quantifying fish diets (Phelps et al., 2007). Stomach fullness is a useful diet measure that is correlated with other diet indices such as total prey mass and prey caloric contribution (Pope et al., 2001).
Research can provide understanding of lakes, their catchments and the mechanisms that sustain ecosystem services; the causes of lake degradation; and methods and technologies for lake restoration (Carpenter and Lathrop, 1999). As such, this study sought to ascertain the stomach fullness of different fish species inhabiting Pengkalan Gawi- Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir. The data and information from this study are hoped to provide some useful inputs for fishery management in Tasik Kenyir.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
Tasik Kenyir is the biggest man-made lake in Malaysia about 36,000 ha (Figure 1). The lake is located in the state of Terengganu on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia lies at 4°47’N to 5°15’N and 102°32’E to 102°55’E. This man-made lake was initially impounded in 1986 to generate hydroelectric power, receiving water inputs from two main rivers – the Terengganu and Terengan rivers (Furtado et al., 1977). The lake is 145 m above the sea level and dotted with more than 300 islands and the mean depth is 37 m. It is a paradise for anglers and a pleasant retreat for urban dwellers.
Sampling was conducted in Pengkalan Gawi- Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir. This section is actually only one part of the lake with an area about 30 km2 (Figure 1). This section extended from Pengkalan Gawi (the jetty) to the south at Pulau Dula. At this section, fish were sampled using gill nets at three sampling stations. These stations were designated as stations A (Pulau Dula), station B (Sungai Ikan) and station C (Pulau Pupi) (Figure 1).
This study was conducted for one year on a monthly basis from February 2008 to January 2009. Experimental fishing was conducted using gillnets measuring 100 meters, 3 meters in depth and with a stretch mesh size of 6.35 cm at all three stations. All fish caught were counted and were identified for species using standard taxonomic keys. The degree of stomach fullness (SF) of fish was estimated by observing the stomach of each individual fish. The fullness degree were categorised into five categories: 0 (empty), 1 (¼ full), 2 (½ full), 3 (¾ full) and 4 (full stomachs).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Thirteen species of fish were caught in Pengkalan Gawi- Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir during the sampling period. Barbodes schwanenfeldii (Lampam sungai) was the most abundant fish species in this lake section followed by Notopterus sp. (Belida) and Hampala macrolepidota (Sebarau). These thirteen species are shown in Table 1.
From all of the species landed, Pristolepis fasciatus (Patong) was recorded with the highest value of stomach fullness (SF) (3.40 ± 0.70) when compared with other species (Table 2). Most of the stomach of Patong showed that it was classified under “full stomach” and the smallest proportion was recorded only with “½ full stomachs” (Figure 2). There was no empty stomach recorded from the samples of Patong. From these results, we can indicate that Patong was the healthiest species living in the lake section. This could also be an indicator that the food sources available here were suitable and easy to consume by Patong.
The SF value of Notopterus sp. (Belida) showed that this species was the second highest (3.00 ± 1.05) after Patong (Table 2). Most of the stomachs of Belida were classified under the full stomach and only small portion (1.3%) of Belida was classified with empty stomach (Figure 2). Belida might be able to consumed most of the food that available in this section due to its wide range of feeding habits. Notopterus sp. was the only species in this study which consumed all of the food items classified (Kamaruddin et al., n.d.). Statistically, SF of Patong and Belida were significantly different from B. schwanenfeldii (Lampam sungai), H. macrolepidota (Sebarau), Hemibagrus nemurus (Baung) and Channa micropeltes (Toman) but showed no significant difference compared with other species.
Probarbus jullieni (Temoleh) was the third highest in the mean SF value (3.00 ± 0.00). According to Ambak and Jalal (2006), Temoleh was not found in Tasik Kenyir prior to this and was introduced by the Department of Fisheries Malaysia into lake. Mohsin and Ambak (1983) and Ambak and Jalal (1998) stated that Temoleh food preference are shelled mollusc and water plants. With the results of this study, it could be an indicator that Temoleh was successful living in this lake due to their ability to consume the food sources available in Tasik Kenyir.
SF of Sebarau was recorded with mean value of 1.89 ± 1.71. Sebarau showed that most of the species had empty stomachs (36.4%) and 27.3 % were recorded with full stomachs (Figure 2). Meanwhile Lampam sungai (mean SF value of 1.65 ± 1.26) showed that most of the species had ¼ full stomachs (43.9 %). This can be an indicator that these two species have a moderate value of SF. This may be due to the high number of individuals due to its abundance, resulting in high competition amongst them to gain their food.
Baung with mean SF value of 1.91 ± 1.72 showed that the SF of the species was balanced between empty stomach and full stomach with 31.8 % each, from the total stomachs observed. This was similar with Toman (mean SF of 1.50 ± 1.78) where half of the stomach (50.0 %) was found to be empty. Mean SF of Channa striatus (Haruan) was 0.00 ± 0.00, which was the lowest when compared with other species where no food was consumed by Haruan in this lake section (Figure 2). From here, we could predict that the predator species like Baung, Toman and Haruan are very selective of their food sources and choose only high-quality food that is available in the lake water. Fish consuming high-quality food can process it with a gut that is shorter than their total length (Wootton, 1990), these are carnivorous fish species.
CONCLUSION
The stomach fullness of fish species in Pengkalan Gawi – Pulau Dula section showed that most of the species had moderate to high values of SF and low proportion of empty stomachs. According to the data obtained, we could suggest that this section of the lake study was able to provide enough food for fish population in this area. Sustainable management and conservation programmes should be taken into consideration in managing the lake so that this condition continues for future generations.
REFERENCES
Ambak M. A. and K . C . A . Jalal (1998) Habitat utilization by the tropical fish community in the man-made Lake Kenyir, Malaysia. Fisheries Management and Ecology 1998, 5, 173-176. Blackwell Science Ltd.
Ambak M. A. and K. C. A. Jalal (2006) Sustainability issues of reservoir fisheries in Malaysia. Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management. 9(2):165-173.
Carpenter S.R. and R.C. Lathrop (1999) Lake restoration: capabilities and needs. 19-28. In: D.M. Harper, B. Brierley, A.J.D. Ferguson and G. Phillips (eds), The Ecological Bases for Lake and Reservoir Management. 1999. Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.
Furtado, J., Soepadmo, I. E., Sasekumar, A. et al. (1977) Ecological effects of the Terengganu hydro-electric project (Kenyir project). Wallaceana (Suppl. 1), 51.
Hyslop, E. J. (1980) Stomach content analysis – a review of methods and their application. Journal of Fish Biology. 17 (4) 411-429.
Kamaruddin, I. S., A. S. Mustafa Kamal, A. Christianus and S. K. Daud (n.d.) A Study on Feeding Habits of Fish Population in Pengkalan Gawi – Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu, Malaysia. unpublished article.
Khan, M. S., Lee, Patrick K.Y., Cramphorn, J. and Zakaria Ismail, Mohd. (1996) Freshwater Fishes of the Pahang River Basin, Malaysia. Wetland Internasional Asia Pacific Publication No : 112.
Mohsin, A. K. M. and M. A. Ambak (1983) Freshwater Fishes of Peninsular Malaysia. Penerbit Universiti Pertanian Malaysia.
Phelps, Q. E., K. A. Powell, S. R. Chipps, D. W. Willis (2007) A method for determining stomach fullness for planktivorous fishes. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. 27: 932–935.
Pope, K. L., M. L. Brown, W. G. Duffy, and P. H. Michaletz (2001) A caloric-based evaluation of diet indices for largemouth bass. Environmental Biology of Fishes 61: 329–339.
Wootton, R. J. (1990), Ecology of Teleost Fishes. New York: Chapman and Hall.
Yusoff F. M. and Gopinath N. (1995) The status of inland fisheries in Malaysia. In: Indo-Pacific Fishery Commission (eds T. Petr & M. Morris) pp. 225–39. FAO Fisheries Report No. 512. Supplement. FAO, Rome, Italy.
FIGURES AND TABLES
Figure 1: Tasik Kenyir in Terengganu is the biggest man-made lake in Malaysia and the square box shows the location of Pengkalan Gawi- Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir.
Figure 2: Stomach fullness degree of different fish species for fish population in Pengkalan Gawi- Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu form February 2008 to January 2009.
Table 1: Table shows the percentage composition of fish population in in Pengkalan Gawi – Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu during the sampling period from February 2008 to January 2009.
| Fish species | Common name | Percentage (%) of fish |
| Barbodes schwanenfeldii | Lampam sungai | 35.77 |
| Notopterus sp. | Belida | 27.37 |
| Hampala macrolepidota | Sebarau | 16.06 |
| Hemibagrus nemurus | Baung | 8.03 |
| Pristolepis fasciatus | Toman | 4.38 |
| Channa micropeltes | Patong | 3.65 |
| Cyclocheilichthys apogon | Temperas | 1.46 |
| Osteochilus hasselti | Terbol | 1.09 |
| Osteochilus vittatus | Rong | 0.73 |
| Chela anomalura | Lalang | 0.36 |
| Labiobarbus lineatus | Kawan | 0.36 |
| Channa striatus | Haruan | 0.36 |
| Probarbus jullieni | Temoleh | 0.36 |
Table 2: Table shows the mean values of stomach fullness for fish population in Pengkalan Gawi– Pulau Dula section of Tasik Kenyir, Terengganu from February 2008 to January 2009 (same letter are not significantly different at P < 0.05. Species without letters were unable to compute ANOVA due to only one individual fish in the sample).
| Species of Fish | Stomach Fullness |
| Lampam sungai | 1.65a ± 1.26 |
| Belida | 3.00b ± 1.05 |
| Sebarau | 1.89a ± 1.71 |
| Baung | 1.91a ± 1.72 |
| Patong | 3.40b ± 0.70 |
| Toman | 1.50a ± 1.78 |
| Temperas | 2.50ab ± 1.29 |
| Terbol | 2.67ab ± 0.58 |
| Rong | 1.50ab ± 0.71 |
| Lalang | 2.00 ± 0.00 |
| Kawan | 2.00 ± 0.00 |
| Haruan | 0.00 ± 0.00 |
| Temoleh | 3.00 ± 0.00 |
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