Occurrence and species diversity of delphinids off-Lagos shore, Nigeria

Little has been documented about delphinid communities in the Nigerian coastal waters. This paper gives baseline information about the delphinid community sighted off-shore Lagos, Nigeria. A dedicated survey of the living resources of Nigerian coastal waters (6°08’N and 2°42’W to 6° 13’N and 3° 27’W ) took place from the Nigeria/Benin boarder along Badagry area to the western part of Ondo State between 17th march and 6th June 2009 and included systematic visual searching of marine mammals. A total effective effort of 264 hours was logged. The boat moved along designated transect lines at a cruising speed of 9.2 km/h. Sighting rate for delphinids was obtained by processing visual data obtained at Beaufort wind scale of 2.5 to 4 nautical miles in visibility, using Distance 2.2 software. Species were identified through Photo-identification method. Fifteen (15) schools of 746 individual’s sightings were made. Four (4) schools of 25 individuals representing 3% of total sightings were classified as “Unidentified”, while 11 schools of 721 individuals (97%) were identified and classified into five (5) species. The pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuate) with two (2) schools of 150 individuals, (Stenella frontalis) with one (1) school of 54 individuals, bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops trucantus) with one (1) school of 32 individuals, Common dolphin (Delphinus delphis ) with four (4) schools of 452 individuals and (3) schools of Atlantic hump-backed dolphin (Sousa teuszii) of 32 individuals. Sighting rate of 5.7 x 10-2 school/hr was estimated for schools while the sighting rate for individuals was estimated at 2.83 individual/hr. The results suggested that the Lagos coast is rich in delphinid biodiversity, which needs to be quantified more accurately during further research.Keywords: Sightings, Oceanic dolphins, abundance, species richness, behaviour, Nigeria

Effects Of Organic Fertilizer And Spacing On Growth And Yield Of Lagos Spinach (Celosia argentea L.)

Experiments were carried out at National Horticultural Research Institute (NIHORT), Ibadan to investigate the effects of maize-stover compost fertilizer and plant spacing on the growth and shoot yield of Celosia argentea L. var. TLV8. Plants were spaced 15x 15cm; 20 x 20cm and 25 x 25cm and the compost fertilizer was applied at 2, 4, and 6 t ha-1. Each experiment was arranged in a split-plot design with three replications, and a control where compost was not applied was set up for each spacing treatment. All data were reported as means, and analyzed combined across the two experiments. Spacing had no significant effect on plant height, stem, girth, number of leaves and cumulative shoot yield but leaf area, number of off shoots and dry matter yield were significantly affected. 25 x 25cm spacing produced the highest number of offshoots whereas the largest leaf area and highest dry matter yield were obtained at 20 x 20cm spacing. Compost rates significantly increased growth and yield of the crop. Plant height and stem girth increased with compost rate up to 6 t ha-1. But plant performance at 6 t ha-1 was not statistically difference from that obtained with 4 t ha-1; dry matter was accumulated most, at 4 t ha-1. Hence, 4 t ha-1 was most outstanding in supporting the production of the crop. Interactive effects of spacing and compost were significant for both growth and yield. The highest plant height was obtained with 15 x 15cm x 6 t ha-1. 20 x 20cm x 6 t ha-1 produced highest leaf area and 20 x 20cm x 4 t ha-1 produced the highest dry matter and cumulative fresh shoot yield. Considering the cost, ease and time of organic fertilizer transportation and application as well as the usable product of the crop obtainable with 20 x 20cm x 4 t ha-1 compost, it appeared to be the most suitable for optimum growth and shoot yield of Celosia. Keywords: Celosia, Compost, Spacing, Organic fertilizer, Organic farmingJournal of Agriculture and Social Research Vol. 8 (1) 2008: pp. 70-7

Impact of organic and inorganic fertilizers on growth, fruit yield, nutritional and lycopene contents of three varieties of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum (L.) Mill) in Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Field experiments were carried out to assess the impact of 100% NPK fertilizer recommendation (300 kg NPK 20:10:10), 100% Tithonia compost (TC), 75% NPK + 25% TC, 50% NPK + 50% TC, 25% NPK + 75% TC and control (non-fertilized plant) on the growth, fruit yield, nutritional and lycopene contents of three tomato varieties (Raoma VF; Ogbomoso local and Califonia wonder). The experiment was a split plot fitted into a randomized complete block design replicated three times. Data were collected on growth and reproductive parameters, fruit and seed attributes, and fruit proximate and nutritional contents. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance to determine significant means. Significant varietal  differences were observed among the tomato varieties in terms of growth, fruit yield and nutritional  attributes. The plant dry matter yield was highest in Ogbomoso local and least in Roma VF. Fruit yield  obtained with Ogbomoso local was 45 and 56% higher than what was obtained for Roma VF and Califonia  wonder, respectively. In terms of vitamin C content, Roma VF fertilized with 50% NPK + 50% TC gave  the highest value which is 23 to 67% higher than values obtained from the other treatment combinations.  Again, irrespective of variety, organically grown tomato contains higher content of lycopene. It was also observed that the higher the proportion of TC compost in the treatments, the better the lycopene content. It could be concluded that the use of organic fertilizer has potential in improving the growth, fruit yield and nutritional contents of any of the three tomato varieties studied. Key words: Lycopersicon esculentum, compost, inorganic fertilizers, fruit yield, nutritional quality, lycopene content.Abbreviation: TC, Tithonia compost; WAT, week after transplanting; TSS, total soluble solid

Efficacy of Major Plant Extracts/Molecules on Field Insect Pests

Insect pests are considered the major hurdle in enhancing the production and productivity of any farming system. The use of conventional synthetic pesticides has led to the emergence of pesticide-resistant insects, environmental pollution, and negative effects on natural enemies, which have caused an ecological imbalance of the predator-prey ratio and human health hazards; therefore, eco-friendly alternative strategies are required. The plant kingdom, a rich repertoire of secondary metabolites, can be tapped as an alternative for insect pest management strategies. A number of plants have been documented to have insecticidal properties against various orders of insects in vitro by acting as antifeedants, repellents, sterilant and oviposition deterrents, etc. However, only a few plant compounds are applicable at the field level or presently commercialised. Here, we have provided an overview of the broad-spectrum insecticidal activity of plant compounds from neem, Annona, Pongamia, and Jatropha. Additionally, the impact of medicinal plants, herbs, spices, and essential oils has been reviewed briefl

Effect of organic root plus (biostimulant) on nutrient content, growth and yield of tomato

Greenhouse and field experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of a new biostimulant (Organic Root Plus) on the performance of tomato (Lycopersicon lycopersicum Mill.). The Organic Root Plus (ORP) applied at 40 l/ha (full rate) was compared with the conventional NPK fertilizer (MF) at 80kg N/ha, 20 1/ha (half-full rate) ORP, complimentary use of ORP with MF at full and half-full rates and control (no fertilizer, no organic root plus). Sole application of ORP did not improve the growth parameters of tomato but increased its root dry weight, root length and root fineness. Complimentary application of ORP with MF promoted both the vegetative growth, root development and fruit yield of the crop. Application of 40 kg N/ha MF complimented with 20 l/ha ORP increased the plant height, number of branches and plant biomass by 18.2%, 45% and 71% respectively when compared with the combination of the fertilizers at full rates. When full rate of ORP was complimented with full rate of MF, the fruit yield increased by 31% over the MF. The later was similarly effective as using half-full rate of ORP and MF. Nigerian Journal of Soil Science Vol. 15 2005: 26-3