An experimental study has been carried out to standardize the minimal hormonal dose for Heteropneustes fossilis (Bloch, 1794). Collected 20 pairs of fish from Bandhab Hatchery, West Bengal and experimented with six different trials using brooders in a ratio of 2:1 in three tanks where a low hormonal dose of 0.25ml/kg body weight to male and 0.5 ml/kg body weight to female were injected with proper dilution with sterile water. Without the dry stripping method and sacrificing, the technique was more effective for successfully induced breeding results up to 90% spawning success. Using a glass breeding tank (4ft × 2ft × 1ft) with a submersible pump water fountain was created to stimulate breeding performance. The greenish or yellowish eggs hatched out within 20±2 hours at a temperature of 32±1°C. The highest fertilization rate achieved was 85.5 %. The spawn was fed on egg yolk, and infusoria and the fry was fed on tubifex worms, mosquito larvae, and green water two to three times a day. Then the fingerlings were fed on commercial feed. The observed maximum survivability rate was 83.3%. This study aims to provide a standardized minimal hormonal dose that can effectively increase the production of singhi on a large scale

Hormonal dose, Induced Breeding, Seed production, Survivability. Fertilization, Spawning

H. fossilis have a relatively high market price compared to carp. Nevertheless, the native population of these indigenous catfish species continues to decline because of excessive exploitation and the destruction of their breeding habitats caused by the use of pesticides in crops and the introduction of non-native fish species. The advancement of captive breeding technologies, while preserving the male, will encourage seed producers to adopt the species for the commercial production of young fish. Presently, farmers choose to cultivate carp due to their ease of breeding in captivity and the ready availability of seeds for cultivation. Additionally, the present study simplifies the breeding of singhi which will encourage the marginal farmers to promote the species for mass-scale seed production. This will help replenish the natural population in its natural habitat and meet domestic demands

Sourav Halder, Mahendra Kumar Yadav, B.K. Mahapatra, Shriparna Saxena and Deepak Kher (2024). Captive Breeding of Singhi, (Heteropneustes fossilis) for Mass-scale Seed Production. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 16(6): 180-184.