Ayu Winna Ramadhani, Deva Achmad Irvanto, Abdul Raheem Faqih, R. Adharyan Islamy, Fitri Sil Valen, Ahmad Syazni Kamarudin, Norshida Ismail, Veryl Hasan
The increasing demand for male B. splendens in ornamental fish markets has driven the need for effective and safer methods of sex control in aquaculture. While synthetic hormones are widely used for masculinization, their potential environmental and health risks have encouraged the exploration of natural alternatives. This study evaluated the dose-dependent effects of bovine testis extract as a natural androgen source on sex ratio, survival rate, and growth performance of B. splendens larvae. A completely randomized design (CRD) was applied with four treatment dosages (0.04, 0.06, 0.08, and 0.10 mg/L), each conducted in triplicate. Larvae were exposed to the treatment through immersion for 24 hours and subsequently reared for 30 days under controlled conditions. The proportion of male fish increased dose-dependently from 36.51% at 0.04 mg/L to 85.00% at 0.10 mg/L, and Binomial Generalized Linear Model (GLM) analysis showed that treatment dosage significantly affected male proportion (p < 0.05). In contrast, the survival rate decreased with higher dosages, with the lowest value (54.17%) observed at the highest treatment level, although the effect was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Specific growth rate (SGR) ranged from 3.37 to 4.18%/day and was also not significantly affected by treatment (p > 0.05). The findings indicate a tendency toward a trade-off between masculinization efficiency and survival performance, suggesting that higher concentrations of bovine testis extract may influence larval survival during early development. From a practical perspective, intermediate dosages may provide a more balanced result by maintaining acceptable survival while achieving a favorable proportion of males. These results demonstrate the potential of bovine testis extract as a natural alternative to synthetic hormones, while highlighting the importance of dosage optimization in aquaculture systems. Copyright: ©2026 The authors.
Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources Management, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Aquaculture (Kediri City Kampus), Universitas Brawijaya, Kediri, 64111, Indonesia; Faculty of Agriculture, Fisheries and Biology, UBB Integrated Campus, Universitas Bangka Belitung, Bangka, 33172, Indonesia; School of Animal Science, Aquatic Science and Environment, Besut Campus, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Besut, 22200, Malaysia; Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, 60113, Indonesia; Research Group of Environmental and Fisheries Resources Management, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, 60113, Indonesia
