Morphological Variation between Hatchery Bred and Wild Caught Anabas testudineus in Malaysia

This study was designed to characterise the cultured and wild populations of Anabas testudineus in Malaysia using morphological parameters. Fish samples from the East and West coast of the country were obtained from fishermen (wild samples) and well-recognised climbing perch farmers in Kedah, Kelantan, Johor and Selangor. The Truss network method was applied to obtain necessary data and analysed to examine phenotypic variation between the cultured and wild stocks. Results obtained suggest that each hatchery population belonged to a distinct stock as revealed by their separate clustering into individual unique groups. However, an extensive overlap was observed in the wild population suggesting similarity of origin. The most important morphological parameters for the discrimination of the two populations are the homologous landmark B (i.e., snout to insertion of the pelvic fin) and C (i.e., above the eye to insertion of the pelvic fin). Genetic characterisation of the A. testudineus is needed to complement the findings of this study and establish a baseline for the development of a selective breeding programme for the fish species in Malaysia.