Assessment of water quality and bacteriological levels in Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) of AibaI Reservoir, Nigeria, West Africa

Anthropogenic activities pose a major threat to the quality of water bodies. This study assessed the water quality and bacteriological levels in the liver, gills and tissues of Oreochromis niloticus (O. niloticus) in Aiba reservoir. The reservoir was purposively partitioned based on anthropogenic activities; fish landing site and accessibility into three sampling zones tagged Zone 1(inlet), Zone 2 (middle) and Zone 3 (outlet) with each zone having a fish landing site namely Gaa Fulani, landing site and Oju odo respectively. Fish samples with average weight of 200g and water samples were randomly collected fortnightly in triplicates for six months. Mean values of water analysis measured were within the tolerable range for fish although there were slight variations within the zones which were not significant (P<0.05) and significant among the months. Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were observed on the liver, tissues and gills of fish samples and can cause dysentery, fever, diarrhea and renal failure in humans. The tissues of fish samples had the highest mean total microbial and coliform count. It is therefore expedient that monitoring strategies be employed for strict adherence to level of pollutants around the reservoir to ensure safe consumption of fish and usage of water.