Int. J. Aquat. Biol. (2013) 1(3): 125-131 

E-ISSN: 2322-5270; P-ISSN: 2383-0956

Journal homepage: www.ij-aquaticbiology.com 

© 2013 Iranian Society of Ichthyology 

Original Article 

Feeding and reproductive biology of Amblypharyngodon mola (Cyrpiniformes: Cyprinidae) 
from two floodplain lakes of India   

 
Debjit Kumar Mondal, Anilava Kaviraj*1 

 
Department of Zoology, University of Kalyani, Kalyani – 741235, W.B. India. 

 
Article history: 
Received 10 May 2013 

Accepted 22 May 2013 

Available online 2 0  June 2013 

 
Keywords:  
Freshwater fish 

Diet 

Gill and gut morphology 

Spawning 

Abstract: Pattern of feeding and reproduction of Amblypharyngodon mola (Hamilton, 1822) was 
studied in two floodplain lakes of North 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal in India during 2011.  

Results indicated that the fish exhibited a predominantly herbivorous diet with algae as the main content 

of gut. A long, thin walled, coiled gut and closely packed filamentous gill racker suited this feeding 

habit. Feeding intensity of the fish fluctuated throughout the year, males showing maximum intensity 

in June and females showing maximum intensity in February and November. Females outnumbered 

males (1.9:1) and were found as highly fecund with a calculated fecundity factor of 1445 ova g-1 of 

body weight. From the peak of gonado-somatic index and ova diameter it was revealed that A. mola 

apparently spawned only once during July in these floodplain lakes. It was concluded that improvement 

of ecosystem health of these two lakes were necessary to ensure spawning of the fish. 
 

Introduction 

Amblypharyngodon mola (Hamilton, 1822) is a 
conspicuous member of the small indigenous 

freshwater fish (SIFF) species that inhabit ponds, 

rivers, floodplain lakes, canals, paddy fields and 

many other small water bodies in the Indian sub-

continent. SIFF species are defined as fish which 

grow to the size of 25-30 cm at mature or adult stage 

of their life cycle (Sarkar and Lakra, 2010). 

Amblypharyngodon mola has drawn special interest 
among more than 200 SIFF available from north east 

India because of its high nutritional value (Alam et 

al., 2004) and demand in the markets of Indian sub-

continent (Azadi and Mamun, 2004).  

Although various aspects of culture and farming of 

the species are known (Kohinoor, 2000; Kohinoor et 

al., 2001; Roy et al., 2002), most farmers of the sub-

continent do not include this species in freshwater 

aquacultures, because it is an auto-breeder in 

                                                           
* Corresponding author: Anilava Kaviraj 

E-mail address: akaviraj@gmail.com 

Tel: +913325828477 

confined water and compete with major carps for 

space, natural food as well as supplementary feed 

(Data, 2010). However, Roos et al. (1999) observed 

that A. mola could be cultured successfully in small 
seasonal ponds in polyculture with carps subject to 

availability of good seeds and minor modification of 

the culture techniques. The floodplain lakes, 

particularly those which are opened and maintain a 

connection with the river, remained as the unique 

habitat for a large number of small freshwater self-

recruiting riverine species of fish like A. mola. In a 
recent study on two floodplain lakes of Icchamati 

river basin A. mola has been found as one of the most 
abundant species in spite of a general trend of decline 

of finfish species in these two floodplain  lakes 

(Mondal and Kaviraj, 2009) and many other 

floodplain lakes of India (Panigrahi et al., 2003;  Kar 

et al., 2006). Suresh et al. (2007) observed that A. 
mola once formed a major component of the 



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fisheries from floodplain lakes of West Bengal, but 

its availability had been drastically reduced during 

the last few years. The floodplain lakes in West 

Bengal and other north eastern states of India are 

gradually shrinking due to several allocthonous and 

autocthonous factors (Das, 2002; Deka et al., 2005; 

Mondal and Kaviraj, 2008).  

Therefore, it has become very pertinent to study the 

biology of A. mola inhabiting these water bodies for 
a sustainable supply of the fish. Comprehensive 

information on the biology of a species is an essential 

prerequisite to plan its stock rehabilitation 

programme in a water body. Reproduction of the 

freshwater fish particularly the SIFF is greatly 

influenced by the environmental condition of the 

habitat occupied by them. At present, only limited 

information is available on the reproduction capacity 

of A. mola in floodplain lakes (Piska et al., 1991). 
The objectives of the present study were to make a 

detailed study on the biology of A. mola with 
emphasis on its reproduction capacity to protect the 

natural population of the species in the floodplain 

lakes of North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal 

in India. 

 

Materials and Methods 

Study sites and sampling: Studies were made in two 
floodplain lakes, Gopalnagar and Dumar, situated on 

Ichhamati river basin in the Bongaon sub-division 

(23.07º N; 88.82º E) of West Bengal in India. A 

detailed account of these two lakes, locally called as 

baur, has been described previously (Mondal and 

Kaviraj, 2009). The study period covered from 

January to December 2011. Random samples of 

A. mola  were collected in the morning from 
different sites of each  baur  using fine mesh cast net 

and gill net and pooled together to make a composite 

sample for study at every month. 

Feeding habit: Detailed feeding habit was studied 
every month on random samples of 15 specimens 

captured from these two lakes. The sampled fish 

were dissected out by a clean scissor and the viscera 

were cut open. Length of the gut and length of the 

body cavity were recorded. Structure of gut, gill and 

gill racker of five sampled fish were recorded. The 

gut was cut open and emptiness or fullness of the gut 

was recorded in all the sampled specimens. The 

period of intense feeding was determined as monthly 

feeding index (FI) using the following formula FI = 

(NF/N) X 100, where NF is the number of fishes with 

food in stomach and N is the number of fish 

examined. 

Gut contents of the sampled fish were taken out from 

the anterior portion of the gut in a watch glass.  

Necessary dilution of the gut content was made with 

normal saline and it was observed under light 

microscope using a Sedgwick-rafter cell. Food items 

were identified up to major taxonomic group. 

Determination of reproductive pattern: The numbers 
of male and female fish in a sample of fifty 

specimens was recorded and reproductive pattern 

was studied separately for each sex. However, length 

and weight of only ovary could be recorded, because 

testis of this species was too small to be weighed. 

The selected mature ovaries were preserved in 5% 

formalin, which helped in separating the eggs from 

the ovarian wall (Shafi and Quddus, 1974) and make 

further studies. Following parameters of 

reproductive behaviors were determined: 

Sex ratio: The sex ratio was analyzed on total 
samples of fish by Chi-square test following the 

equation of Fisher (1970), assuming that the ratio of 

male and female in the population to be 1:1.  

Gonado-Somatic Index (GSI): The gonado-somatic 
Index (GSI) was determined using the formula    GSI 

=    (GW / BW) × 100, where GW = gonad weight, 

BW = body weight of fish. 

Fecundity, maturity and ova diameter: Fecundity 
was measured on random samples of 50 mature 

female fishes (length 4.70 to 7.7 cm and weight 2.50 

to 7.0 g). Samples taken from the anterior, middle 

and posterior region of both ovaries were weighed 

separately and number of mature ova present within 

each sample was counted. Absolute fecundity was 

estimated on the basis of total weight of the ovaries 

using the following formula F = (WO × N) / W, 

where F is fecundity, WO is total weight of ovary, W 

is the weight of the sub-samples of ovary and N is 



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Mondal and Kaviraj/ Int. J. Aquat. Biol. (2013) 1(3): 125-131 

the number of mature ova counted in the sub sample. 

Ova diameter was calculated every month on ovaries 

collected at random from 10 mature fishes with the 

help of ocular and stage micrometer. Diameters of 10 

ova were measured at random from anterior, middle 

and posterior region of each ovary and then the mean 

diameter was calculated.  

 

Results  

Anatomical features related with feeding: Specimens 
of A. mola collected from these two baurs showed 
terminal mouth.  Gills were found with long 

filaments and minute but closely packed filamentous 

gill rackers (Fig. 1). Alimentary canal was 

characterized by a long, thin walled and highly 

coiled gut. There was practically no stomach. 

Instead, the anterior part of the intestine was slightly 

swollen forming an intestinal bulb behind the 

oesophagus.  

Feeding behavior and gut contents: Feeding intensity 
fluctuated throughout the year showing three peaks 

both in male and female. Maximum feeding activity, 

as revealed from the feeding index, was recorded in 

June in case of male and February and November in 

case of female. Females showed less feeding activity 

for the months of May to July than rest of the months, 

while males showed less feeding activity for the 

months of April, July and August than the rest of the 

months (Fig. 2).  

The fish showed a preference of herbivorous diet 

(Fig. 3). Algae were the main component of the gut 

Table 1. Monthly variation in sex ratio of Amblypharyngodon mola. 
Months Total samples Male Female Sex ratio Chi-square 

J 50 16 34 1:2.1 6.48* 

F 50 
14 36 1:2.6 

9.68** 

M 50 
21 29 1:1.4 

1.28 

A 50 
15 35 1:2.3 

8.00** 

M 50 
14 36 1:2.6 

9.68** 

J 50 
15 35 1:2.3 

8.00** 

J 50 
12 38 1:3.2 

13.52** 

A 50 
17 33 1:1.9 

5.12** 

S 50 
22 28 1:1.3 

0.72 

O 50 
20 30 1:1.5 

2.00 

N 50 
22 28 1:1.3 

0.72 

D 50 
22 28 1:1.3 

0.72 

Overall 600 
210 390 1:1.9 

54.00** 

Significant at *P < 0.05 and **P < 0.01 

 

Figure 1. Structure of gill and alimentary canal of 

Amblypharyngodon mola. Figure 2. Monthly variation of feeding index of 
Amblypharyngodon mola. 

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content followed by plant materials, debris and mud, 

crustacean, rotifera and rhizopoda. Among different 

groups of algae observed in the gut Cholorophyceae 

was the dominant group followed by Mixophycae 

and Bacillariophyceae. The rests included 

Cyanophyceae and Euglenophyceae. There was a 

slight variation in food preference among different 

weight class. Lower weight class preferred more 

algae than higher weight class. The higher weight 

class though preferred algae consumed high amount 

of other plant materials and debris and mud than the 

lower weight class. The ratio of total length to gut 

length was 1: 3.56.  

Reproductive pattern: The ratio of male and female 
varied between 1:1.3 to 1:3.2, which has been 

mentioned in Table 1. The ratio significantly 

departed from the expected 1:1 ratio in the months of 

January (P<0.05), February, April, May, June, July, 

August, October (P<0.01). During these months the 

females significantly outnumbered the males. The 

overall sex ratio for the whole sample over a period 

of twelve months also varied significantly from the 

expected ratio (P<0.01) with 1.9 female for every 

male.  

The GSI of the female ranged from a minimum value 

of 1.39 ± 0.45 in December to a maximum value of 

12.75 ± 3.75 in July. The diameter of ova ranged 

from 0.05 to 0.62 mm. It showed a single peak, 

which coincided, with the peak of GSI (Fig. 4). The 

fecundity of mature female A. mola  ranged from 
3785 (fish with body length 4.90 cm, body weight 

2.70 g and ovary weight 0.2 g) to 12590 (fish with 

body length 7.20 cm, body weight 6.50 g and ovary 

weight 0.92 g) and the calculated fecundity factor 

was 1445 ova g-1 of body weight. 

 

Discussion 

Feeding habit: Gut content analysis of A. mola 
shows that fish is predominantly herbivorous in 

feeding habit. Algae are the main food item of this 

fish. Very little amount of zooplankton in the gut 

content indicates that A. mola feeds zooplankton 
occasionally. This is also supported from the 

observations of gut content of A. mola captured from 
reservoir of Andhra Pradesh (Piska et al., 1991), of 

Bangladesh (Mamun et al., 2004) and floodplain 

lakes of West Bengal (Suresh et al., 2007). However, 

Piska et al. (1991) found higher aquatic plants as the 

second most important food items next to algae in 

the gut content and found no animal food contents in 

the gut. In the present study, Chlorophycae was 

recorded as the most dominant group in the gut 

content of mola. Mamun et al. (2004) also found 

Chlorophycae as the dominant group of algae in the 

gut content of A. mola. But Suresh et al. (2007) 
observed Myxophyceae as the dominant group of 

algae in the gut content of A. mola.   Gut length more 
than three times longer than the body length strongly 

support the herbivorous nature of the fish (Mamun et 

Figure 3. Food preference of different weight class of 

Amblypharyngodon mola. 

Figure 4. Gonado-somatic index and ova diameter of female 

Amblypharyngodon mola. 



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al., 2004).  Present data indicate that the feeding 

habit of A. mola changes with the increase in body 
weight.  Piska et al., (1991) also showed that feeding 

habit of A. mola changed with the increase in length 
of the fish. The present study indicates that intensity 

of feeding of mola in the two floodplain lakes is high 

(less number of empty stomach and high feeding 

index) during September to February. Piska et al. 

(1991) observed September to January as the period 

of intense feeding for this fish. The lowest feeding 

intensity (High number of empty stomach and low 

feeding index) of mola in these two floodplain lakes 

during July coincided with the active spawning 

month. Piska and Waghray (1986) also reported that 

high incidence of empty guts coincided with the 

spawning season. 

Reproductive pattern: Sex ratio of A. mola showed a 
predominance of females over males (1 male: 1.9 

female) in the floodplain lakes under study. This is 

also supported by the observation of Piska and 

Waghray (1986), Afroze et al. (1991), Azadi and 

Mamun (2004), Suresh et al. (2007). The single peak 

of GSI and ova diameter indicate that A. mola breeds 
once in a year (July) in the studied floodplain lakes. 

However, breeding time varies with habitat. Suresh 

et al. (2007) observed April to October as the 

breading season for this species in another floodplain 

lake of West Bengal.  Piska and Waghray (1986) 

observed that the breeding season of A. mola from 
Himayatsagar, Andhra Pradesh extended from 

February to July. But in Kaptai reservoir of 

Bangladesh A. mola was found as a multiple breeder 
and spawned during July, August, October and 

March (Azadi and Mamun, 2004). Kohinoor et al. 

(2003) obtained highest value of GSI during July and 

concluded that A. mola breeds twice in a year once 

during May-July and again during September-

October from samples collected from the pond of 

Bangladesh agricultural university. Hoque and 

Rahaman (2008) also concluded that A. mola breeds 
twice in a year once in May and another in 

September in ponds and beels of Bangladesh. Result 

of the present study indicates that A. mola is a highly 
fecund fish and capable of breeding twice. Fecundity 

of A. mola in the floodplain lakes under study 
increased with length and weight of the fish and 

weight of the gonad. Similar observation had been 

recorded by Azadi and Mamun (2004) in a reservoir 

of Bangladesh.  

It is concluded from the present study that A. mola is 
predominantly planktophagus and predominantly 

herbivorous in feeding habit. It is necessary to 

maintain ecosystem health of the two floodplains so 

that there is adequate supply of plankton in the lakes 

as food for the fish. The fish breeds only once i.e. 

during July in the floodplain lakes under study and it 

is also necessary to keep the environment of the lakes 

free of any stress during this period.   

 

Acknowledgements 

Authors acknowledge the help provided by the 

Fishermen Cooperative Society associated with 

Gopalnagar and Dumar baur and partial financial 

assistance provided by the DST-PURSE programme 

of the University of Kalyani. 

  

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