Module 1:

Introducing tilapia
6
Key messages
Pest sh are a major threat to your local
waterways
Pest sh spread very quickly
Pest sh are believed to be mainly spread by
human activities
Tilapia are threatening to invade the
MurrayDarling Basin
Learning resources
PowerPoint
Case studies
Learning activities

Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
Objectives
Participants will gain an understanding of
why pest sh are a problem and what the
main species are, with particular emphasis
on Mozambique tilapia
Participants will gain a broad knowledge
of tilapia including their characteristics,
biology, distribution, why they have become
a problem and how they spread
Intended participants
All stakeholder groups
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What is a pest sh?
The term pest sh refers to sh species
that are not native to an area and that have
potential negative social, economic or
environmental impacts. Populations of pest
sh have successfully established in many of
our local waterways and are a major threat to
the high diversity of native freshwater sh in
Queensland and New South Wales.
The presence of pest sh in natural waterways
can have some serious impacts such as:
Habitat
decreased water quality
increased water turbidity and siltation
increased nutrient loads
Native fauna and ora
introduction of diseases and parasites
decreased biomass and diversity of rooted
water plants
reduced numbers and diversity of native
aquatic fauna (through direct competition
for food or space, or predation)
decreased numbers and diversity of
aquatic insects
altered food chains and other ecological
processes
increased dominance of waterbodies by
pest sh
Economic and recreational
increased pressure on recreationally
signicant species through competition, etc.
reduced environmental and conservation
value of infested waterbodies
diminished recreational value of infested
waterbodies
reduced value of recreational and/or
commercial sheries.
Furthermore, pest sh such as tilapia and
gambusia often exhibit aggressive behaviour,
resulting in reduced condition, increased risk of
infection from wounds and a higher mortality of
native sh.
Although the presence of pest sh can
potentially have some devastating results, their
impacts on a particular area will depend on the
specic case; it is important to note that pest
sh are often a symptom of a degraded habitat,
not a cause.
What makes an animal a pest?
Despite the best eforts of humans to eradicate
them, many pest animals continue to thrive.
But what is it that makes these animals
so persistently invasive? Aside from the
inconsistent attitudes of people to pests,
explanations can be found in the special
characteristics of a pest. A pests success in
Australia can mostly be attributed to specic
aspects of its biology, combined with habitat
disturbance that provides favourable conditions
and a lack of predators and diseases that might
otherwise limit its numbers and distribution.
Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
8
Figure 1.3 Redn (Perca uviatilis)
photo courtesy of NSW DPI
Figure 1.4 Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis
mossambicus)
There are four particular pest sh species
that are having serious negative impacts
on waterways in New South Wales and
southern Queensland: carp (Cyprinus
carpio), Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis
mossambicus), redn (Perca uviatilis) and
eastern gambusia (Gambusia holbrooki). Of
these species, the Mozambique tilapia (also
known as the Mozambique mouth-brooder)
is the only one currently not present in the
MurrayDarling Basin (MDB). This pest sh
has been listed in the top 100 of the worlds
worst introduced species and is regarded as
one of the greatest threats to Australias native
biodiversity. Tilapia were rst introduced into
Australia in the 1960s as ornamental sh and
now dominate many Queensland waterways.
The species success as an invader can be
attributed to its ability to easily and rapidly
breed, general hardiness, rapid growth rate and
environmental plasticity.
Figure 1.1 Carp (Cyprinus carpio)
Figure 1.2 Eastern gambusia (Gambusia holbrooki)
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Figure 1.7 Female Mozambique tilapia carrying
juveniles in her mouth
Figure 1.8 Female Mozambique tilapia with juveniles
Habitat preference
Tilapia are habitat generalists, meaning
they can adapt to many environments,
including disturbed environments where they
often ourish. Tilapia can prey shift allowing
them to utilise available food sources under
a wide range of environmental conditions.
The stunting mechanism allows tilapia to exist
in extremely high densities and to outcompete
natives for food and space. They can survive
in conditions too poor to support native sh
species, as they can tolerate polluted and
turbid waters. In environments with low levels
of dissolved oxygen, tilapia can supplement
their oxygen requirements by gulping air at
the waters surface.
Tilapia are hardy sh, tolerant of a broad range
of environmental conditions such as poor water
quality, high salinity and high temperatures.
They are reportedly able to survive and grow
in seawater. They can also survive in water
temperatures ranging from 8C to 42C,
Things to know about tilapia
Breeding
The Mozambique tilapia is a mouth-brooder,
which means that eggs and larvae are reared
and protected in the adults mouth. The female
collects the fertilised eggs into her mouth from
a circular pit or nest built (and aggressively
defended) by the male. This technique ensures
a high juvenile survival rate of 5090percent.
Furthermore, tilapia can often reproduce
year-round, adding to their ability to quickly
establish large populations in a waterway.
In poor environmental conditions, tilapia can
use a breeding strategy called stunting, where
earlier maturation at a smaller size enables the
sh to concentrate their energy on reproduction
instead of growth.
Figure 1.5 Mozambique tilapia nests
Figure 1.6 Female Mozambique tilapia carrying eggs
in her mouth
Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
10
giving them the potential to live in habitats
covering a large portion of Australia. The lower
temperature range, however, can be a limiting
factor as they require temperatures greater than
16C to remain active and feed; temperatures
greater than 20C are generally required for
them to breed.
Generally speaking, tilapia inhabit mud-
bottomed, well-vegetated areas in slow-owing
rivers and streams or still-water habitats.
Tilapia also thrive in habitats that consist of
the invasive wetland weed para grass
(Urochloa mutica).
Figure 1.9 An area infested by para grass
(Urochloa mutica)
Figure 1.10 Para grass (Urochloa mutica)
Diet
Although tilapia prefer a diet of organic material
such as algae, animal waste and microscopic
organisms, they are known to be exible in their
food choices and can adapt to alternative food
sources available in their environment. Reports
have shown that tilapia range from being
herbivorous to totally carnivorous. Despite what
some people believe, tilapia also prey on other
sh; they have even been known to resort to
cannibalism.
Distribution
Tilapia have established populations worldwide
and pose severe ecological threats in most
countries. In Australia, populations currently
exist in a number of locations in tropical and
subtropical areas, including both northern and
southern Queensland. Tilapia are established in
Western Australian rivers that closely resemble
systems in the semi-arid north-west of the
MDB. Although there are currently no reports
of tilapia in the MDB, established populations
are known to exist in waterways only a short
distance away, such as Boondooma Dam in the
Upper Burnett River system.
Many populations of tilapia also exist in the
greater Brisbane area, including:
the Pine Rivers catchment (including North
Pine Dam and Lake Kurwongbah)
the Caboolture River
drains near Deception Bay
the Brisbane River (including Lakes Wivenhoe
and Somerset)
the Bremer River near Ipswich
the Tingalpa Reservoir
parts of the Lockyer Valley
the lower Albert and Logan rivers
drainages near the Gold Coast.
In order to best use the resources available
to tackle pest sh incursions, Queensland
has refocused its activities to give priority
to vulnerable catchments and hot spots
within those catchments. The focus is also
on increasing community awareness, which,
in combination with surveillance by sheries
teams, will increase the chances of early
detection. The MDB has been identied as
one of these vulnerable catchments.
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To prevent the introduction of tilapia into the
MDB, specic areas are currently targeted for
community education, pest sh monitoring and
surveillance, and control and eradication where
necessary. These areas (listed opposite) are
targets because of their direct links with the
MDB, as well as demographic and geographic
factors that put them at risk of an incursion.
Some of these sites already contain established
populations of tilapia and are regularly
monitored for changes in the population
dynamics that could increase the chance of
tilapia spreading further.
Tilapia hot spots in and around the MDB
Caboolture River
Dalby
Kingaroy
Lake Kurwongbah, Petrie
Maroon Dam, Boonah
Moogerah Dam (near Aratula)
Oakey
Roma
Toowoomba
Upper Burnett River
Upper Stanley River
Warwick
Wivenhoe Dam
Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
12
Figure 1.11 Oreochromis mossambicus distribution throughout Queensland, as at April 2011
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How pest sh spread
The term new incursion is used when a pest
sh species is reported or sighted in an area
where it has not previously been recorded.
New incursions often occur as a result of the
deliberate or accidental actions of members
of the community. However, pest sh can also
move up and down a river and its tributaries
due to ooding or natural migration, resulting
in expansion of existing populations or a new
incursion in an area.
Examples of human-mediated new incursions
include:
people moving pest sh from one waterbody
to another, either inadvertently or on purpose
people dumping exotic aquarium sh into
creeks and rivers
people using pest sh as bait
pest sh escaping from ornamental ponds
or farm dams where they are cultured for
consumption
water transfers between river basins for
irrigation and drinking purposes.
New incursions of tilapia can result from
incidents such as those listed above, even if the
sh involved are dead. This is because juvenile
tilapia can survive for a considerable time in the
females mouth after the female dies. When a
dead female is thrown back into a stream, any
juveniles in her mouth can survive and breed.
The spread of tilapia is alarming, with new
incursions (mostly in Queensland) being
conrmed at a steady rate since the 1970s.
Particularly notable was the spread of tilapia
throughout the Burdekin River system, which
began in 2004. Within four years, tilapia had
invaded 3000 km of the waterway. The list
opposite is a chronology of tilapia spread
throughout Australia from 1977 to 2009.
1977 Tingalpa Reserve, Qld (drinking water dams)
1978 Ross River, Townsville, Qld (botanic gardens)
1978 Cairns, Qld (urban creeks)
1979 North Pine Dam, Qld
1981 Carnarvon region, WA (farm dams)
1980s Port Douglas, Qld (resort ponds)eradicated
19862005 Upper Barron catchment, Qld (farm dams)
1996 Tinaroo Dam, Barron River catchment, Qld
2000 Boondooma Dam, Burnett River, Qld
2001 Brisbane River, Qld
2003 Ross Dam, Townsville (from farm dam) and
upper Herbert (drinking water dam), Qld
2004 Burdekin, Qld (farm dams)
2005 Burdekin, Qld (diferent location)
2004, 2007 Endeavour River, Cooktown, Qld (farm dams)
2008 Eureka Creek, Mitchell catchment,
Gulf of Carpentaria, Qlderadicated
2009 Bullyard Creek, Kolan River catchment, Qld
2009 Burrum Heads, Burrum River catchment, Qld
Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
14
Case studies
Cane toads
The classic example of a tropical Australian pest species is the cane toad (Bufo marinus), which was
rst introduced to far north Queensland in 1935. Soon after their introduction, cane toads rapidly
spread throughout most of the eastern and northern parts of Queensland and northern New South
Wales. Most recently, cane toads have started to colonise the Northern Territory at an estimated
speed of approximately 3050 km per year. In the near future, they are predicted to become
established in the northern parts of Western Australia.
Cane toads have become such successful invaders in tropical
Australia because of unlimited food supply, suitable environment
and low rates of predation. These factors have allowed dynamic
reproduction and spread. Their continued spread is only limited by
environmental factors, such as the availability of water for breeding,
tolerable temperatures, suitable shelter and an abundance of food.
The cane toad (Bufo marinus)
Tilapia in Lake Nicaragua
Lake Nicaragua is the largest tropical lake outside of Africa. It is a dominant feature of the
geography of Central America and contains at least 16 species of native sh from the cichlid family.
These sh are a large component of the native shery and a vital resource in one of the New
Worlds poorest countries.
In the early 1980s, an attempt was made to increase catchable sh by introducing tilapia as part
of an extensive stocking program. In just a few years, local shers saw a dramatic shift in the sh
composition of the lake. The tilapia quickly adapted to their new habitat and grew rapidly, feeding
on local plants and sh. They formed large feeding schools, moving through the lake system over
long distances. By 1990, in some places, exotic tilapia constituted as much as 54percent of the
sh being caught, while the biomass of native cichlids had declined by as much as 80percent.
As a result, a considerable number of native cichlids are now declining.
The ability of tilapia to adapt to saltwater conditions poses a serious threat to Nicaraguas coast
zone. Lake Nicaragua is connected by a major waterway, the Rio San Juan, to the Caribbean Sea.
This is a large river in which sh, including such large species as the Caribbean bull shark
(Carcharhinus leucas), move up and down; thus the river itself poses no barrier to migration. It is
likely that tilapia will eventually move down the San Juan and out into the fertile coastal areas of
the Caribbean, where they will colonise the shallows along the eastern coastline of Nicaragua.
If populations of tilapia establish here, they may seriously afect the productive marine sheries
and vital nursery areas for millions of Caribbean marine sh.
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Learning activities
Successful invaders
Purpose: To reinforce the specic biological traits that have enabled tilapia to become such
successful invaders of aquatic ecosystems.
Since being introduced into Australia in the 1970s, tilapia have colonised and become the
dominant sh species in many waterways. Their success as invaders can be attributed to
which of the following? (Discuss with those around you and circle the appropriate answers.)
Tilapia can easily and
rapidly breed
Tilapia have versatile
feeding habits
Tilapia have a rapid
growth rate
Tilapia feed only on a particular
species of aquatic plant, which is
found throughout Australia
Tilapia often have striking
colouration, which scares of
Australian native freshwater sh
Tilapia can withstand
very low water
temperatures
(i.e. 5C and under)
Tilapia can tolerate
harsh environmental
conditions
Tilapia are larger than
Australian native
freshwater sh
Answer
Tilapia can easily and
rapidly breed
Tilapia have versatile
feeding habits
Tilapia have a rapid
growth rate
Tilapia feed only on a particular
species of aquatic plant, which is
found throughout Australia
Tilapia often have striking
colouration, which scares of
Australian native freshwater sh
Tilapia can withstand
very low water
temperatures
(i.e. 5C and under)
Tilapia can tolerate
harsh environmental
conditions
Tilapia are larger than
Australian native
freshwater sh
How pest sh spread
Purpose: To prompt participants to think about ways in which tilapia can spread between
waterways and encourage them to have pest sh in mind when carrying out
activities near waterways.
In small groups, discuss the ways in which pest sh, such as tilapia, can spread from one area
to another. Can you think of specic examples of situations that might result in new tilapia
incursions? Make a list of those you think might be most signicant in your local area.
Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
16
Impacts of tilapia
Purpose: To provide an understanding of how the specic behaviour and ecology of tilapia
directly impacts aspects of natural habitats, native fauna, native ora, society and
the economy.
Think about what youve just learnt about the Mozambique tilapias behaviour and ecology
(breeding, habitat preference and diet). Consider how these specic characteristics could
impact on:
the habitat native fauna native ora society the economy.
Use a whiteboard or butcher paper to list the impacts under each of these headings. For
example, the nests built by male tilapia could potentially impact on a habitat by increasing
turbidity; altering natural erosion patterns causing bank instability; and changing the physical
structure of the habitat. It is important to note, however, that these are only possible impacts
and that the actual impact of a tilapia incursion would depend on the specic case.
Biology overlap
Purpose: To demonstrate how the biology of tilapia can overlap with the biology of native
sh fauna and the implications this may have.
As a group, discuss the information provided in the following table. Which aspects of the
species biology overlap and, therefore, how might the presence of tilapia impact on the native
species listed? Use the information in the comments column to prompt discussion.
17
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Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
18
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Module 1:
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20
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Module 1:
Introducing tilapia
22
Quiz
1. The denition of a pest sh is:
a) A native sh species that has
signicantly increased in population
size
b) A sh species that has been introduced
to control insect pests
c) A sh species that is not native to an
area and can potentially have negative
social, economic or environmental
impacts
d) A species of sh that dominates a
waterway
2. Which four main pest sh species are
having serious negative impacts in New
South Wales and Queensland?
a) Carp, Mozambique tilapia, redn and
gambusia
b) Carp, Nile tilapia, red devil and
gambusia
c) Carp, goldsh, Mozambique tilapia and
gambusia
d) Carp, Mozambique tilapia, redn and
goldsh
3. Which fact about the Mozambique tilapia is
false?
a) It is a mouth-brooder
b) The males build nests for breeding
purposes
c) They can often reproduce year-round
d) Females give birth to live young
4. Stunting is:
a) When pest sh exist in small
populations but still have negative
impacts on the ecosystem
b) A phenomenon where sh can mature
earlier and concentrate their energy on
reproduction instead of growth
c) A sh disease resulting in the
production of smaller eggs and
juveniles
d) When pest sh put pressure on native
sh, resulting in native sh maturing
earlier and at smaller sizes
5. Which statement is true?
a) Tilapia can survive in water
temperatures as low as 4C.
b) Tilapia can survive for a long time
outside of water, allowing them
to migrate between unconnected
waterways
c) Tilapia cannot survive in water with low
levels of dissolved oxygen
d) Tilapia can survive in seawater
6. Mozambique tilapia mainly eat:
a) Native sh such as gudgeons and bream
b) Organic material such as algae, animal
waste and microscopic organisms
c) The roots of large aquatic plants
d) Juvenile tilapia
7. In Australia, populations of Mozambique
tilapia are currently known to exist in:
a) Queensland, New South Wales and
Western Australia
b) Western Australia and Queensland
c) Queensland and New South Wales
d) Queensland and the Northern Territory
Answers
1. c) A sh species that is not native to an
area and can potentially have negative
social, economic or environmental
impacts
2. a) Carp, Mozambique tilapia, redn and
gambusia
3. d) Females give birth to live young
4. b) A phenomenon where sh can mature
earlier and concentrate their energy on
reproduction instead of growth
5. d) Tilapia can survive in seawater
6. b) Organic material such as algae, animal
waste and microscopic organisms
7. b) Western Australia and Queensland
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FAQs
Do people eat tilapia?
Tilapia is a popular food sh in Asia, Africa and
the South Pacic. However, the use of tilapia for
consumption in Queensland is illegal.
Are there other species of tilapia in the
wild in Australia (other than Mozambique
tilapia)? Where?
The spotted tilapia (Tilapia mariae) is another
species of tilapia that has established breeding
populations in Australian waters. It is found
in northern Queensland waters around the
Cairns region and also in the heated waters of
the Hazelwood Power Station pondage near
Morwell in Victoria. An outbreak of redbelly
tilapia (Tilapia zilii) occurred near Perth,
Western Australia, in 1975, but was eradicated
by the state sheries department. There are
currently no reported outbreaks of any tilapia
species in New South Wales waters.
How big do tilapia grow?
Mozambique tilapia usually grow to a maximum
of 40cm in length. However, much larger
individuals have been reported in estuarine
creeks in South East Queensland.
There are already large populations of
carp in my local area. Will tilapia still be a
problem if they are introduced as well?
Yes, tilapia and carp ll diferent niches,
meaning they have diferent roles and efects
in the aquatic community. Therefore, the
combined impact of both of these pest species
will be greater than the impact of one of the
species alone.
Can recreational anglers target tilapia?
Tilapia may be captured during recreational
shing; however, their possession in
Queensland is illegal. Therefore, any tilapia
captured must be euthanised and disposed
of straightaway. The most humane way to
euthanise tilapia is to stun the sh with a sharp
blow to the head just above the eyes, causing
brain destruction. It can be disposed of in an
appropriate rubbish bin or buried well away
from the water. The most important things for
recreational anglers to remember are not to use
tilapia as bait, alive or dead, and not to release
tilapia back into a waterway.
What do I do if I already have tilapia in my
farm dam?
Phone the DEEDI Customer Service Centre on
13 25 23 or NSW DPI on (02) 4916 3877 and
speak to a pest sh ofcer who will provide
appropriate recommendations and may
organise an inspection of the waterbody if
necessary.