ZOOLOGY PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS

Amietophyrnus regularis a synonym of Bufo regularis is an amphibian in the family Bufonidae.Amietophyrnus regularis is commonly known as the African common toad in English (IUCN, 2012). The species which are also called true toads have fat bodies with warts, and can live in drier climates while most frogs usually live in or near water (Nworah and Olorunfemi, 2011). They are widespread in the tropics, especially in Savannas, montane, grassland, forests and are beneficial animals to have in the home garden, as well as on farms. Toads play roles in nutrients cycles and as environmental indicators. Nutrients are recycled from aquatic systems to terrestrial when the toads enter the land after metamorphosis. Tadpoles, the swimming larval forms of toads and frogs that hatch from fertilized eggs in water, are important food source for fish and other aquatic organisms (Towle, 1989; New World Encyclopaedia, 2008).

Studies on the biology of silver catfish Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus (Lacèpède, 1803) in Jebba Lake, Nigeria was carried out between January 2009 and December 2010. Samples collected using fleets of experimental gillnets were used for the study. There was fluctuations in the physico-chemical parameters measured; mean electrical conductivity (66.41±13.89μs/cm), and mean phosphate (0.20±0.15mg/l), which was significantly different (p<0.05) at the zones. The males and females showed allometric (2.49) and isometric (3.18) growth pattern respectively, with strong relationship and direct proportionality between length-length for males (0.93) and females (0.83). The condition factor for males (K=1.74) and females (K=1.83) showed that the lake was conducive for the survival of the fish because it was greater than 1. The positive correlations in the morphometric parameters, and the meristic counts confirmed the presence of the species in the lake. The age structure was between 0+ and 3+ with bulk of the samples within ranges of 2 and 2+, males being bigger than females.

Amietophyrnus regularis a synonym of Bufo regularis is an amphibian in the family Bufonidae.Amietophyrnus regularis is commonly known as the African common toad in English (IUCN, 2012). The species which are also called true toads have fat bodies with warts, and can live in drier climates while most frogs usually live in or near water (Nworah and Olorunfemi, 2011). They are widespread in the tropics, especially in Savannas, montane, grassland, forests and are beneficial animals to have in the home garden, as well as on farms. Toads play roles in nutrients cycles and as environmental indicators. Nutrients are recycled from aquatic systems to terrestrial when the toads enter the land after metamorphosis. Tadpoles, the swimming larval forms of toads and frogs that hatch from fertilized eggs in water, are important food source for fish and other aquatic organisms (Towle, 1989; New World Encyclopaedia, 2008).

The classification of an insect as a pest is a subjective one based on its potential damage to human purposes or natural habitats and eco-system. Insect pests are said to be able to kill agricultural crops, ornamental plants etc. They can also consume and damage harvested food and also cause illness or unproductively in agricultural animals e.g. Cattle and vector as larvae while they may be pollinators in adulthood. Some insects that are considered as pests are actually more beneficial than pestiferous for example wasps predate or parasitize many insects. An insect pest may cause injury which may be physical (bites and stings) or medical (causing diseases or illness) or economic (monetary lose of goods or properties). Injury may arise directly from the pest itself or may develop indirectly as a result of the actions or behavior of the pest. Insect pest affect us in one way or the other by the following ways:

This study is useful to fish farmers as it is expected to create awareness on the appropriate feeding frequency that can yield better growth in Clarias gariepinus culture. It is also expected to enable aqua culturists to be aware of the best economical method that yields better growth in different feeding frequencies within a short production period. Finally, the results are expected to be useful to commercial fish farmers in making managerial decisions in the production of Clarias gariepinus.

Insect pests are those insect species that are injurious or a nuisance. They cause injury or damage to crops in the field and grains in storage. Man and his domesticated animals are also attacked by insect pests. Arthropod predators belong to the phylum Arthropoda and are most times beneficial in the control of insect pests. Arthropod predators are members of the phylum Arthropoda which capture and feed on the prey. They are generally larger than their prey and kill or consume many prey during their life time. Examples of arthropod predators include the lady beetles, spiders, praying mantids, damsel bugs, lace wings, syrphid flies etc. They can feed on insect pests like aphids, moths, mites, butterflies, brown plant hoppers etc. These arthropod predators have been very effective in some cases of biological control programes of insect pests. Examples include the use of the cocinellid beetle, Radolia cardinalis (a lady bird beetle) to control the cottony-cushion scale, Icerya purchasi (a scale insect) which was a citrus pest in carlifornia, U.S.A. also wolf spiders have been effectively used to control the rice pest (the brown plant hoppers) in Indonesia.

Nematodes are tiny, thread-like worms measuring 0.0 15 inch to 0.187 inch in length. They are either free living parasitic or saprophytic, identified on the basis of shapes, size and special structures. The females become swollen and flask-shaped as a result of accumulation of eggs with the anus virtually terminal in position, while the males are vermiform (Sherf and Macnah, 1986; Chitwood, 1949; Taylor and Sasser, 1978; Idowu, 1979 and Idowu, 1983) Nematodes are known for causing destructive diseases of crops as they have a wide range of feeding habit, constitute about 80% of all multicellular animals, attacking nearly every crop that is grown in the field and as a result crop yields is greatly affected reducing quantity and quality of crops on field, orchard, home garden and green houses (Mai, 1985; Symth, 1994; Sasser, 1952). Among the favoured host in Nigeria as a whole include tomato, yam, tobacco, papaw, citrus and sweet potato (Sasser, 1954).

Poultry farming is the practice of raising domesticated birds such as chicken, turkey, duck, geese, pheasant, guinea fowl etc. as a subcategory of animal husbandry for the purpose of producing meat and egg for food and other by-products such as droppings, feathers as raw materials for industries. Poultry refers to domesticated birds that are reared majorly for meat and egg and sometimes, other by-products. In Agricultural resource management study (ARMS) formally known as farm cost and returns survey (FCRS) poultry include oestriches and other game birds but most operation raise only one specie of poultry for single purpose e.g. farmers keep laying hen to produce egg for human consumption or for breeding purpose.

Freshwater is a very important natural resource crucial for the survival of all living beings. UNESCO (2003)reported that water is the most vital resource for all kinds of life on earth and essential for sustainability of the earth’s crust ecosystem. The quality of life depends on the quality of water. Physico – chemical factors are important in estimating the constituents of water and concentration of pollutants or contaminants. These factors are interrelated and interdependent with biological factors (plants and animals). Similarly, these factors immensely influenced the uses as well as the distribution and richness of biota (Unanam and Akpan, 2006). Physical parameters of water bodes include water movement, depth, turbidity, transparency, temperature and suspended solids. Chemical parameters include pH, dissolved oxygen, carbonates, bicarbonates, nitrate, phosphate, carbon dioxide, cations and anions and dissolved organic matters (Mustapha and Omotosho, 2005).