Editing Tilapia (section)

== Species ==
Historically, all tilapia have been included in their namesake genus ''[[Tilapia (genus)|Tilapia]]''.<ref name=Dunz2013 /> In recent decades, some were moved into a few other genera, notably ''[[Oreochromis]]'',<ref name="ITISOreo">{{ITIS | ID = 170014 | taxon = Oreochromis| date = 16 August 2007}}</ref> and ''[[Sarotherodon]]''.<ref name="ITISSaro">{{ITIS | ID = 553244 | taxon = Sarotherodon| date = 16 August 2007}}</ref> Even with this modification, apparently ''Tilapia'' was strongly [[Polyphyletic|poly–]] or [[paraphyletic]].<ref name="Nagl2001">{{cite journal | last =Nagl | first =Sandra |author2=Herbet Tichy |author3=Werner E. Mayer |author4=Irene E. Samonte |author5=Brendan J. McAndrew |author6=Jan Klein | title =Classification and Phylogenetic Relationships of African Tilapiine Fishes Inferred from Mitochondrial DNA Sequences | journal =Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume =20 | issue =3 | pages =361–374 | year =2001 | doi =10.1006/mpev.2001.0979 | pmid=11527464| bibcode =2001MolPE..20..361N }}</ref> In 2013, a major [[taxonomy (biology)|taxonomic]] review resolved this by moving most former ''Tilapia'' spp. to several other genera. As a consequence, none of the species that are of major economic importance remain in ''Tilapia'', but are instead placed in ''[[Coptodon]]'', ''Oreochormis'', and ''Sarotherodon''.<ref name=Dunz2013 />

=== Exotic and invasive species ===
{{See also|Tilapia as exotic species}}

Tilapia have been used as biological controls for certain aquatic plant problems. They have a preference for a floating aquatic plant, [[duckweed]] (''Lemna'' spp.), but also consume some filamentous algae.<ref>{{cite web |author=John W. Cross |url=http://www.mobot.org/jwcross/duckweed/weed_control.htm |title=Aquatic Weed Control |publisher=Mobot.org |date=2013-08-13 |access-date=2013-09-14 |archive-date=2012-09-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921081544/http://www.mobot.org/jwcross/duckweed/weed_control.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> In [[Kenya]], tilapia were introduced to [[Mosquito control|control mosquitoes]], which were causing [[malaria]], because they consume [[mosquito]] larvae, consequently reducing the numbers of adult female mosquitoes, the [[Vector (epidemiology)|vector]] of the disease.<ref name=Petr2000 /> These benefits are, however, frequently outweighed by the negative aspects of tilapia as invasive species.<ref>{{cite web|title=Oreochromis aureus|url=http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=1323|access-date=25 April 2015}}</ref>

Tilapia are unable to survive in temperate climates because they require warm water. The pure strain of the blue tilapia, ''[[Oreochromis aureus]]'', has the greatest cold tolerance and dies at {{convert|45|F|C|order=flip}}, while all other species of tilapia die at a range of  {{convert|52|to|62|F|C|order=flip}}. As a result, they cannot invade temperate habitats and disrupt native ecologies in temperate zones; however, they have spread widely beyond their points of introduction in many fresh and brackish tropical and subtropical habitats, often disrupting native species significantly.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gisp.org/casestudies/showcasestudy.asp?id=78&MyMenuItem=casestudies&worldmap=&country=|title=Global Invasive Species Programme, Invasive Species Information, Tilapia|access-date=2012-09-15}}</ref> Because of this, tilapia are on the [[IUCN]]'s 100 of the World's Worst Alien Invasive Species list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.issg.org/worst100_species.html|publisher=[[IUCN Species Survival Commission]]|work=Invasive Species Specialist Group|title=100 of the World's Worst Alien Invasive Species|access-date=2012-09-15}}</ref> In the United States, tilapia are found in much of the south, especially [[Florida]] and [[Texas]], and as far north as Idaho, where they survive in power-plant discharge zones.<ref>{{cite web|title=NAS – Nonindigenous Aquatic Species|url=https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=463|publisher=USGS|access-date=10 June 2014}}</ref> Tilapia are also currently stocked in the [[Phoenix, Arizona]], canal system as an algal growth-control measure. In a Washington, D.C. fishing report from 21 June 2024, it was reported that an angler caught a Tilapia on a [[crankbait]] at the Jones Point Park under the [[Woodrow Wilson Bridge]],<ref>{{cite news |title=District Fishing Report |url=https://doee.dc.gov/service/district-fishing-reports |agency=DOEE |issue=21 June 2024}}</ref> which is on the [[Potomac River]]. Many state fish and wildlife agencies in the United States, Australia, South Africa, and elsewhere consider them to be [[invasive species]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.issg.org/database/species/management_info.asp?si=131&fr=1&sts=&lang=EN|publisher=[[IUCN Species Survival Commission]]|work=Global Invasive Species Database|title=Oreochromis mossambicus (fish)|access-date=2012-09-15}}</ref>

=== Aquarium species ===
Larger tilapia species are generally poor community [[aquarium]] fish because they eat plants, dig up the bottom, and fight with other fish. The larger species are often raised <!-- in aquariums --> as a food source, though, because they grow rapidly and tolerate high stocking densities and poor water quality.

Smaller West African species, such as ''[[Coelotilapia joka]]'' and species from the crater lakes of [[Cameroon]], are more popular as aquarium fish. In specialised cichlid aquaria, tilapia can be mixed successfully with nonterritorial cichlids, [[Callichthyidae|armored catfish]], [[tinfoil barb]]s, [[garpike]], and other robust fish. Some species, including ''[[Heterotilapia buttikoferi]]'', ''[[Coptodon rendalli]]'', ''[[Pelmatolapia mariae]]'', ''C. joka'', and the brackish-water ''[[Sarotherodon melanotheron]]'', have attractive patterns and are quite decorative.<ref name="AC2008">{{cite web |url=http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/tilapia/aquariums.php|title=Keeping Tilapia in Aquariums |year=2008 |work=Tilapia |publisher=AC Tropical Fish |access-date=2009-01-19}}</ref>

{{common fish}}

=== Commercial species ===
Tilapia were originally farmed in their native Africa and [[Levant]]. Fast-growing, tolerant of stocking density, and adaptable, tilapia have been introduced to and are farmed extensively in many parts of Asia and are increasingly common [[aquaculture]] targets elsewhere.

{| class="wikitable collapsible"
|-
!colspan="11"| Principal commercial tilapia species
|-
!Common name
!Scientific name
!Maximum<br />length
!Common<br />length
!Maximum<br />weight
!Maximum<br />age
![[Trophic level|Trophic<br />level]]
![[FishBase|Fish<br />Base]]
![[FAO]]
![[WoRMS]]
![[IUCN]] status
|-
|[[Nile tilapia]]
|''Oreochromis niloticus'' <small>(Linnaeus, 1758)</small>
|style="text-align:right;"| 60&nbsp;cm
|style="text-align:right;"|  cm
|style="text-align:right;"| 4.324&nbsp;kg
|style="text-align:right;"| 9 years
|style="text-align:center;"| 2.0
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oreochromis | species = niloticus | month = September | year = 2012}}</ref>
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/3217/en |title=''Oreochromis niloticus'' Linnaeus, 1758) |work=Species Fact Sheet |publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization]] of the United Nations|access-date=2012-09-15 }}</ref><ref name=FAONileTilapia />
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite WoRMS |title=''Oreochromis niloticus'' |id=293639 |access-date=2012-09-15 }}</ref>
|style="text-align:center;"| [[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|NT IUCN 3 1.svg]] <small>Least Concern<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn|title=''Oreochromis niloticus''|page=e.T166975A134879289|author=Diallo, I.|date=2020|volume=2020|access-date=19 November 2021|author2=Snoeks, J.|author3=Freyhof, J.|author4=Geelhand, D.|author5=Hughes, A.|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T166975A134879289.en}}</ref></small>
|-
|style="background:#eef;"| [[Blue tilapia]]
|style="background:#eef;"| {{spaces|4}}- ''Oreochromis aureus''<br /> {{spaces|6}}<small>(Steindachner, 1864)</small>
|style="background:#eef; text-align:right;"| 45.7&nbsp;cm
|style="background:#eef; text-align:right;"| 16&nbsp;cm
|style="background:#eef; text-align:right;"| 2.010&nbsp;kg
|style="background:#eef; text-align:right;"|  years
|style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"| 2.1
|style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase | genus = Oreochromis | species = aureus | month = September | year = 2012}}</ref>
|style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"|
|style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite WoRMS |title= ''Oreochromis aureus'' |id=279196 |access-date= August 12, 2017}}</ref>
|style="text-align:center;"| [[File:LC IUCN 3 1.svg|NT IUCN 3 1.svg]] <small>Least Concern<ref name="iucn">{{cite iucn|title=''Oreochromis aureus''|page=e.T166933A6293372|author1=Awaïss, A.|year=2010|volume=2010|access-date=4 February 2019|author2=Azeroual, A.|author3=Lalèyè, P.|name-list-style=amp|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/166933/6293372}}</ref></small>
|-
|colspan="2" style="text-align:center;"| Nile tilapia + blue tilapia hybrid
|style="text-align:right;"| cm
|style="text-align:right;"| cm
|style="text-align:right;"| kg
|style="text-align:right;"| years
|style="text-align:center;"|
|style="background:#eee;" colspan="4"|
|-
|[[Mozambique tilapia]]
|''Oreochromis mossambicus'' <small>(Peters, 1852)</small>
|style="text-align:right;"| 39&nbsp;cm
|style="text-align:right;"| 35&nbsp;cm
|style="text-align:right;"| 1.130&nbsp;kg
|style="text-align:right;"| 11 years
|style="text-align:center;"| 2.0
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{FishBase |genus=Oreochromis |species=mossambicus |month=September |year=2012}}</ref>
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2408/en |title=''Oreochromis mossambicus'' (Peters, 1852) |work=Species Fact Sheet |publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization]] of the United Nations |access-date=August 12, 2017}}</ref>
|style="text-align:center;"| <ref>{{cite WoRMS |title=''Oreochromis mossambicus'' (Peters, 1852) |id=218777 |access-date=August 12, 2017 }}</ref>
| [[File:VU IUCN 3 1.svg|NT IUCN 3 1.svg]] <small>Vulnerable</small><ref name="IUCNgladius2">{{cite iucn |author=Bills, R. |date=2019 |title=''Oreochromis mossambicus'' |volume=2019 |page=e.T63338A174782954 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T63338A174782954.en |access-date=11 November 2021}}</ref>
|}

{{multiple image
|align             = left
|caption_align     = center
|direction         = vertical
|width             = 300
|header            = Global harvest of tilapia species in million tonnes as reported by the [[FAO]], 1950–2009 <ref name="faostat" />
|header_align      = center
|header_background = 
|footer            = 
|footer_align      = 
|footer_background = 
|background color  = 
|image1            = Tilapia wild capture time series.png
|alt1              = 
|caption1          = ↑&nbsp;Wild capture
|image2            = Tilapia aquaculture time series.png
|alt2              = 
|caption2          = ↑&nbsp;Aquaculture production
}}

==== Aquaculture ====
{{Main|Aquaculture of tilapia}}
[[File:Rednile2jf.JPG|thumb|right|Red nile tilapia under experimentation in [[CLSU]], Philippines]]

Farmed tilapia production in 2002 worldwide was about {{convert|1.5|e6t|e6ST|abbr=off}} annually, with an estimated value of US$1.8 billion,<ref>{{cite web|author1=De Silva, S.S |author2=Subasinghe, R.P. |author3=Bartley, D.M. |author4=Lowther, A. |title=Tilapias as Alien Aquatics in Asia and the Pacific: A Review |publisher=FAO Fisheries Technical Paper – No. 453 |year=2004 |url=http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/007/y5728e/y5728e00.HTM |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080217052013/http://www.fao.org/docrep/007/y5728e/y5728e00.htm |archive-date=17 February 2008}}</ref> about equal to those of [[salmon]] and [[trout]].

Unlike carnivorous fish, tilapia can feed on [[algae]] or any plant-based food. This reduces the cost of tilapia farming, reduces fishing pressure on prey species, avoids concentrating toxins that accumulate at higher levels of the [[food chain]], and makes tilapia the preferred "aquatic chickens" of the trade.<ref name="Barlow2000">{{cite book |last=Barlow |first=G. W. |year=2000 |title=The Cichlid Fishes |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=Perseus Publishing |isbn=0-7382-0376-9 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/cichlidfishesnat00geor_0 }}</ref>

Because of their large size, rapid growth, and palatability, tilapia cichlids are the focus of major farming efforts, specifically various species of ''Oreochromis'', ''Sarotherodon'', and ''Coptodon'' (all were formerly in the namesake genus ''Tilapia'').<ref name=Dunz2013 /> Like other large fish, they are a good source of [[protein]] and popular among artisanal and commercial [[fishery|fisheries]]. Most such fisheries were originally found in Africa, but outdoor fish farms in tropical countries, such as [[Papua New Guinea]], the [[Philippines]], and [[Indonesia]], are underway in freshwater lakes.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/007/y5728e/y5728e05.htm |title=Title unknown |publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization]] of the United Nations |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517151932/http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=%2Fdocrep%2F007%2Fy5728e%2Fy5728e05.htm |archive-date=May 17, 2006 }}</ref> In [[temperate zone]] localities, tilapiine farming operations require energy to warm the water to tropical temperatures. One method uses [[waste heat]] from factories and power stations.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.auri.org/news/ainjul98/tilapia.htm |title=GO FISH, Egyptian Style |work=Ag Innovation News |publisher=Agricultural Utilization Research Institute |access-date=2008-04-27 |archive-date=2008-07-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730045855/http://www.auri.org/news/ainjul98/tilapia.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{failed verification |date=September 2012}}

At 1.3 million tonnes per annum, China is the largest tilapia producer in the world, followed by Egypt with 0.5 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eco-business.com/news/2010/oct/28/finding-more-fish-between-egypt-and-vietnam/ |title=Finding more fish, between Egypt and Vietnam |date=28 October 2010 |publisher=eco-business.com |access-date=2012-09-15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112190054/http://www.eco-business.com/news/2010/oct/28/finding-more-fish-between-egypt-and-vietnam/ |archive-date=12 November 2010 }}</ref> The US, by comparison, produces 10 thousand tonnes against a consumption of 2.5 million.<ref name="faostat">Based on data from the [http://faostat.fao.org/site/629/default.aspx FishStat database]</ref>

In modern [[aquaculture]], [[wild-type]] Nile tilapia are not too often seen, as the dark color of their flesh is not much desired by many customers, and because it has a bit of a reputation of being a [[rough fish]] associated with poverty.<ref name="miami">{{cite web |url=http://www.miami-aquaculture.com/tilapia.htm |title=Tilapia Aquaculture |publisher=Miami Aqua-culture, Inc. |access-date=2012-09-15}}</ref> However, they are fast-growing and give good [[Fish fillet|fillets]]; [[leucistic]] ("red") breeds which have lighter meat have been developed and are very popular.

[[Hybrid (biology)|Hybrid]] stock is also used in aquaculture; Nile × blue tilapia hybrids are usually rather dark, but a light-colored hybrid breed known as "Rocky Mountain White" tilapia is often grown due to its very light flesh and tolerance of low temperatures.<ref name="miami" />

Commercially grown tilapia are almost exclusively male, typically done by adding male [[sex hormone]] in the food to the tilapia [[Juvenile fish|fry]], causing any potential female tilapia to change sex to male.<ref name=FAONileTilapia>{{cite web | author1=Nico, L.G. | author2=P.J. Schofield | author3=M.E. Neilson | year=2019 | title=Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758) | url=http://www.fao.org/fishery/culturedspecies/Oreochromis_niloticus/en | publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization, United Nations | access-date=5 November 2019 }}</ref><ref name=Wan2019>{{cite journal | author1=Wan, Z.Y. | author2=G. Lin | author3=G. Yue | year=2019 | title=Genes for sexual body size dimorphism in hybrid tilapia (Oreochromis sp. x Oreochromis mossambicus) | journal=Aquaculture and Fisheries | volume=4 | issue=6 | pages=231–238 | doi=10.1016/j.aaf.2019.05.003 | doi-access=free | bibcode=2019AqFis...4..231W | hdl=10356/142831 | hdl-access=free }}</ref> It can also be achieved through [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridization]] of certain tilapia species or the use of so-called "supermales" that have [[homozygous]] male sex chromosomes (resulting in all their offspring receiving a male sex chromosome and thus becoming males).<ref name=Wan2019 /><ref name=Baroiller2009>{{cite journal | author1=Baroiller, J.F. | author2=H. D'Cotta | author3=E. Bezault | author4=S. Wessels | author5=G. Hoerstgen-Schwark | year=2009 | title=Tilapia sex determination: Where temperature and genetics meet | journal=Comp Biochem Physiol A | volume=153 | issue=1 | pages=30–38 | doi=10.1016/j.cbpa.2008.11.018 | pmid=19101647 | url=http://agritrop.cirad.fr/548992/ }}</ref> Males are preferred because they grow much faster than females.<ref name=FAONileTilapia /> Additionally, because tilapia are prolific breeders, the presence of female tilapia results in rapidly increasing populations of small fish, rather than a stable population of harvest-size animals.<ref name="MyTilapia">{{cite web |url=http://www.mytilapia.com/tilapia_fact.aspx |title=Fact about Tilapia Fish (''Oreochromis ''spp.) |access-date=2012-09-15}}</ref>{{unreliable source? |date=September 2012}}

Tilapia, as a "traditional" dish, was first introduced in the [[Philippines]] in 1950 with [[Mozambique tilapia]] followed by [[Nile tilapia]] in 1972 from Thailand. Strains such as [[terapon]] (gunggong) and [[Neogobius pallasi|white goby]] ([[Tank goby|biyang puti]]) were abundant in [[Laguna de Bay]]. In 1988, [[WorldFish]], Filipino and Norwegian researchers started [[Aquaculture of tilapia|aquaculture]] of the [[Genetically modified food|Genetically Improved]] Farmed Tilapia (GIFT).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lasco  |first1=Gideon |title=Tilapia, a history|url= https://opinion.inquirer.net/175686/tilapia-a-history|accessdate=August 5, 2024 |publisher= [[The Philippine Star]]|date=August 2, 2024}}</ref>

Other methods of tilapia population control are [[polyculture]], with predators farmed alongside tilapia or hybridization with other species.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Multivariate methods in aquaculture research: case studies of Tilapias in experimental and commercial systems |date=1993 |publisher=International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management ([[ICLARM]]); Agricultural Research Organization; Bundesministerium für Wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung |isbn=978-971-10-2285-3 |editor-last=Prein |editor-first=M. |series=ICLARM contribution |location=Manila, Philippines : Bet Dagan, Israel : Bonn, Federal Republic of Germany |editor-last2=Hulata |editor-first2=Gideon |editor-last3=Pauly |editor-first3=D. |editor-last4=International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management}}</ref>

{{clear}}