200

TILAPIA

BRACKISHWATER FARMING 202

Select a good fishpond site 202
Experts foresee great demand for tilapia fingerlings 203
Some ways to produce tilapia fingerlings 204
Proper handling of fry produces
vigorous fingerlings 205

FRESHWATER F A R M I N G 206
Cage farming of Tilapia mossambica 206
How to construct a floating cage for the Nile tilapia 206
The proper way to stock Nile tilapia in cages 207
Growing tilapia in cages in lakes 209
Tilapia cage farming in Laguna de Bay 211
New improved techniques in tilapia farming 212
Low-cost feed for Nile tilapia in cages 212
Supplemental feed makes tilapia grow faster,
more nutritious 214
Some tips on tilapia farming in freshwater 214
For bigger tilapia, control their population 215
Tilapia reared during warmer months reach
market size rapidly 216
Tilapia sold live brings a higher price 217

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 218

Tilapia raisers need more government attention 218
Fishpond in the forest 219
201 TILAPIA
 202

Brackishwater farming

SELECT A GOOD FISHPOND SITE

For successful fish farming choose a good location for your

fish pond.

Fish farming experts say that fishponds can be constructed

almost anywhere. However some sites are much better and can be
developed more economically. This is contained in the Philippines
Recommends for Tilapia developed for Filipino fish farmers by
fisheries scientists of the Philippines.

In selecting a proper site for and in building a fishpond, consi-

der the following:

1. Be sure there's an adequate water supply. Water should be

enough ail year round. For fishponds along the coast, the source
of good quality water is the tide which brings in either salt or brack-
ish water. To avoid the destructive effect of wave action and tidal
waves, locate your pond at a minimum of one kilometer away from
the seashore. Make use of river and canal systems for waterways.

2. Site should be easily drained whenever necessary. Good

drainage is necessary to dry the pond bottom and get rid of undesi-
rable fish and water plants. In brackishwater ponds, the elevation
of the fishpond should be above that of the low tide level. Otherwise
you will need pumps to dry the ponds.

3. A good fishpond soil is clay, clay loam, or sandy clay. Hard

mud is preferable to the soft and loose kind of soil. Avoid sandy,
rocky or gravelly soils. If possible do not put up ponds in areas
with thick deposits of organic or decaying matter.

4. Level marshes, swamplands or tidal flats are preferred sites.

Uneven terrain needs a lot of levelling which requires more expenses.
203 TILAPIA

5. Areas with plenty of big rocks and thickly rooted plants

should be avoided. Rocks cause leaks that are difficult to seal while
decaying roots along dikes serve as source of water seepage. Thick
rooted plants are costly to remove.
6. Sites which are usually flooded and exposed to strong waves
should not be selected. If your area is near a foot hill, dig a canal
around your ponds to divert run-off water.
7. Your fishpond site should be near market outlets and good
transportation facilities.
8. Finally, it would be desirable if the locality has plenty of
available low-cost and properly trained labor as well as production
and construction materials.

EXPERTS FORESEE GREAT DEMAND FOR

TILAPIA FINGERLINGS

Rice-fish culture has passed from the experimental stage to the

field trial stage. It has been proven successful and profitable at the
field trials conducted by the Freshwater Aquaculture Center. Thus,
the government recently launched a campaign to promote rice-
fish (particularly Tilapia and carps) culture among the nation's
farmers.

However, there is one problem: the supply of fry and finger-

lings may not meet the requirements of a nationwide adoption of the
technology.

Consider these facts. The Philippines has 1.4 million hectares of

irrigated ricelands. Experts estimate that if all these lands are some-
how devoted to rice-fish culture, we would be needing from 4,200
million (or 4.2 billion) to 8,400 million (8.4 billion) fingerlings
in one cropping alone. One cropping is 80 to 100 days or about
three months. The estimates do not even take into account the
fingerling requirements of existing and yet-to-be developed tilapia or
carp fishponds and fish cages.

Considering these estimates, the potential for the fish seed (fry
and fingerling) production aspect of the industry looks good indeed.
BRACKISHWATER FARMING 204

This is one reason, the rice-fish program being handled by the Fresh-
water Aquaculture Center for the government has included the
training of farmer-cooperators on fish hatchery management.

SOME WAYS TO PRODUCE TILAPIA FINGERLINGS

1. Enclosure or "bitinan". This is the simplest way to breed

Java and Nile tilapia. An inverted mosquito net or "bitinan" made
of nylon netting is used. The net is suspended and supported in a
pond by means of four poles. Stock three to five females for every
male breeder per square meter of "bitinan" area. Grow plankton
in the pond to serve as tilapia food.

Collect the fry from the "bitinan" once a month and transfer
them to another enclosure or to a nursery pond for holding.

2. Trench method. A trench or canal one-half to one meter

wide and 20 to 40 centimeters deep is dug along the side of the dike
of a rice paddy with a good water supply. Stock Java or Nile tilapia
breeders at a ratio of 3 females to 1 male for every two square
meters of trench. For zillii tilapia, stock at a one-to-one male-female
ratio per two square meters. The fry are caught with a dip net or
a scissor net. See that the rice field is free of predators and harmful
chemicals.

3. Pond method. A pond is used to raise fingerlings. When

male and female tilapia are mixed in a pond at 10,000 to 20,000 per
hectare, a large number of fry can be recovered after three to four
months. Collection of fry is done by partially draining the pond
and separating the adults with a coarse-meshed net and then scooping
the young with a fine-meshed seine.

SOURCE: Philippine Recommends for Tilapia 1976, PCARR. Los Baños. Laguna.
205 TILAPIA

PROPER HANDLING OF FRY PRODUCES

VIGOROUS FINGERLINGS

To get a high survival rate of vigorous stocks, tilapia fry must be

handled properly. A very practical and inexpensive way of holding
fry or fingerlings for future use is by using the net enclosure or
"bitinan."

Put in from one thousand to two thousand fry per square meter
of enclosure or 5,000 to 1,000 fingerlings. Fish seeds may also be
stocked in fertilized nursery ponds at densities of 100,000 fry per
hectare or 50,000 fingerlings per hectare. Guard against predators
like mudfish (dalag) and "bid-bid."

SOURCE. Philippines Recommends for Tilapia 1976, PCARR, Los Baños, Laguna.
 206

Freshwater farming

It's getting popular

CAGE FARMING OF TILAPIA MOSSAMBICA

Tilapia farming in floating cages has been found to be profitable

in Lake Bunot, San Pablo City and has spread in Laguna de Bay,
Lake Pacay and Pantabangan Reservoir.

The commercial floating cage used in Lake Bunot for raising

Tilapia mossambica is constructed of locally available materials such
as bamboo, wood and nylon netting with 12.7 millimeter mesh.
A cage farmer could get as much as P25,000 from each cage in six
months.

Lake Bunot fish farmers stock as much as 100,000 fingerlings of

T. mossambica per cage. Fingerlings weigh 5 to 10 grams each
on the average. The fish grow mainly on the natural food available
in the lake. Rice bran is occasionally given as supplemental feed.
As much as 10 to 15 tons per cage is harvested every six months.
Marketable weight of tilapia is 100 to 150 grams.

HOW TO CONSTRUCT A FLOATING CAGE

FOR THE NILE TILAPIA

With only a few pesos, one can start growing Nile Tilapia
(Tilapia nilotica) in floating cages. You can do it in rivers, lakes,
reservoirs, swampy areas and ponds with flowing water as long as the
water is at least four feet deep.

According to Dr. Rafael D. Guerrero III, dean of the college

of inland fisheries at Central Luzon State University, one can con-
207 TILAPIA

struct a fish cage at a cost of only P40 to P70 depending on the

source and kind of materials. This cage measures 1 x 1 x 1 meter or
one cubic meter.

The cage is made of wooden frames enclosed by 3/4 inch mesh

size synthetic (polyethylene) netting. It has three main accessories:
a hinged lid or cover, two styrofoam floats, and a feeding box.

The lid should be lunged with a non-metallic material like old

rubber tire strips to avoid corrosion. As the lid will always be
exposed to sunlight, you may use 1/4-inch mesh G.I. screen instead
of synthetic netting. It's more durable than the synthetic net which
can only last up to six months. Synthetic nets in the other parts of
the cage which are kept underwater remains useful for over two years
with normal care.

You need two styrofoam floats measuring 100 to 15 x 7.5

centimeters each. Attach these floats with G.I. straps on opposite
sides of the upper part of the cage.

The feeding box measures 1 x 0.5 x 0.5 meter with four sides
enclosed by fine mesh netting. It is suspended inside the cage.
You can further strengthen the cage by doubling the netting
with a 1.5 meter wide net. Stretch one piece of this net to enclose
the bottom and two opposite sides of the cage. This would make the
bottom stronger. Attach the netting to the frame by nailing bamboo
splits over it. Paint the wooden frames with coal tar.

THE PROPER WAY TO STOCK NILE TILAPIA

IN CAGES

Nile tilapia is most desirable for cage culture. It grows fast

and big in cages.

Depending on the size, fingerlings will cost from ten to twenty

centavos a piece.

Using a cage measuring 1 x 1 x 1 or one cubic meter, you may

stock from 250 to 1,500 fingerlings depending upon the water
conditions, size of fingerlings and management.
FRESHWATER FARMING 208

Adult tilapia
209 TILAPIA

In a lake, reservoir or swift-flowing river, you can stock as high

as 1,000 to 1,500 pieces per cage. In bodies of water with slow
to moderate moving water, 500 to 1,000 fingerlings are recom-
mended.

If you intend to grow tilapia in large sizes which is from 100 to

200 grams reduce the stock to 250 per cage. Reduce it further to
100 to 200 fingerlings if supplemental feeding only is done. High
stocking densities require feeding with artificial diets for efficient
growth.

To grow large Nile tilapia, the fish are manually sexed after two
months of culture. Only the faster-growing males are kept in cages
for further growth. Male tilapia can be distinguished from the
female by their bigger size and the presence of only one opening in
their genital papilla. The female papilla has two openings.
GROWING TILAPIA IN CAGES IN LAKES
Lake-grown tilapia raised in pens similar to milkfish pens would
burrow under the bottom of the fence net and escape. This problem
has been remedied by using floating cages such as those in Lake
Bunot in San Pablo City and lately, in Laguna de Bay.

Tilapia cages in Laguna de Bay are built like a fishpen except

for the net flooring which prevents fish from burrowing into the
mud bottom and escaping. The net resembling an inverted mosquito
net is tied to the bamboo poles staked firmly on the lake bed.
The frame for the cage is of bamboo poles braced together by
lashing bamboo horizontally at about one and-a-half meters above
the water level. The net is made of nylon or polyethylene materials
and has a mesh size of 0.5 to 2.5 centimeters. The upper rim of the
net is tied to each bamboo pole one meter above the water level and
the bottom line is tied about 30 centimeters below the lake bottom.

Sizes of fish cages range from 50-200 square meters and are set
in clusters (or modules) of two to 20 units.

They must be located in areas sheltered from strong winds and

with the water not shallower than two meters.

SOURCE: "Cage Culture of Tilapia in Laguna de Bay," A.M. Mane, Technical Consultation
on Available Aquaculture Technology in the Philippines (proceedings),
SEAFDEC AQD, Feb. 1979.
 FRESHWATER FARMING
210

Floating cages for rearing of cultivable fish species

211 TILAPIA

TILAPIA CAGE FARMING IN

LAGUNA DE BAY

Small fishermen around Laguna Lake can now raise tilapia

in cages. The SEAFDEC Aquaculture Department Freshwater
Fisheries Station in Binangonan, Rizal is developing tilapia farming
in the lake. It requires a very small capital and the technology is
simple.

Here are the features of the tilapia cage farming technology:

A fish cage that can be easily made using locally available mate-
rial costs about one thousand pesos (P1,000). The dimensions of the
fish cage is 20 meters by 10 meters by 3 meters, large enough to be
stocked with 10 thousand (10,000) fingerlings. You can produce
one thousand kilos of marketable tilapia in five months. This should
give a gross income of around six thousand pesos (P6,000).

These are the simplified steps as developed by the SEAFDEC

Freshwater Fisheries Station:

Obtain Tilapia nilotica breeders, composed of 30 females and

15 males, weighing about 150 grams each. Place the breeders in
cages of 3 x 3 x 2 meters dimension and feed them with tilapia
pellets at 10 percent of the body weight. The tilapia pellets are
known as FAS Tilapia pellets.

Tilapia will spawn after two to three weeks. Observe the

appearance of fry on the surface of the water. Scoop the fry and
transfer them to another cage of the same size which is 3 x 3 x 2
meters. Put 10 thousand fry in the cage and feed them with pellets
at 10 percent of the body weight. In one month, fry will reach
fingerling size or about two to three inches long.

Stock the fingerlings in rearing cages of 10 x 20 x 3 meters.

Place the rearing cages in deeper portions of the lake with the net
touching the bottom. Feed once a day at 10 percent body weight.
Harvest tilapia after five months.

Write to the Head of the Freshwater Fisheries Station, Bina-

ngonan, Rizal for printed materials giving the details of the tilapia
cage farming technique.
FRESHWATER FARMING 212

NEW IMPROVED TECHNIQUES IN

TILAPIA FARMING

Tilapia's potentials for large-scale farming are so great that

aquaculture researchers are now giving more attention to its develop-
ment.

The SEAFDEC Freshwater Fisheries Station in Binangonan,

Rizal has been conducting several studies to improve Tilapia farming.

Here are some of the recent findings in the station:

1. A hatchery and nursery system for Tilapia nilotica in cages in

Laguna Lake can be built out of low-cost materials. The system
can be easily adapted and financed by small operators to ensure
them of continuous supply of fingerlings. The hatchery is capable
of producing 250 fry per spawner every three to four weeks. Stock-
ing rate is 6 to 7 adult Tilapia per cubic meter at a sex ratio of three
females to one male. Harvested fry are sorted and reared in hapas
until they become ready for transfer to grow-out cages.

2. Tilapia fry can be reared in hapas for one to two months at

500 fry per cubic meter without supplemental feeding. But with
complete feeding using SEAFDEC-formulated algae cake, stocking
density can be doubled to 1,000 per cubic meter.

3. A new Tilapia breed - SEAFDEC 2000 - has been developed

from a cross of red tilapia from Taiwan and Tilapia nilotica. The
new breed produces progenies that are uniform in size, with fast
growth rate, and a very high survival rate. Mass production of this
breed is being undertaken by the SEAFDEC Binangonan station
for distribution to interested Tilapia cage farmers.

LOW-COST FEED FOR NILE TILAPIA

IN CAGES

For high yields, Nile tilapia in cages should be given supplemen-

tary feed especially if the water's natural food productivity is poor.
The feed does not have to be costly.
213 TILAPIA

One such feed has been formulated at the Central Luzon State
University. Its ingredients are locally available and cheap. It costs
P1.20 to P1.50 per kilo. It is efficient - giving an average feed
conversion of 2.5 That is, you spend 2.5 kilos of feed to produce
one kilo of fish.

The feed consists of 75 percent fine rice bran (cono) and

25 percent local fish meal. It is prepared and fed to the fish in moist
pellet form.

To prepare 10 kilos of the feed, 2.5 kilos of fish meal are mixed
thoroughly with 7.5 kilos of fine rice bran. Store the feed in gunny
sacks or plastic bags in a cool, dry place.

Moist pellets are produced by mixing enough water with the

mashed feed to form moist balls. The moist balls are then pressed
into an ordinary meat grinder with 1/4-inch die to produce the
noodle-like moist feed. When fed to tilapia, the noodles are broken
into pellets.

The daily feeding rate varies from 3 to 5 percent of total fish

weight depending on the size of the fish. For fish weighing 50 grams
or less, the feeding rate is 5 percent; 4 percent for fish ranging from
50 to 100 grams, and 3 percent for fish weighing more than 100
grams. Younger fish utilize feed better than older ones.

How do you determine the amount of feed needed in a day?

First, compute the total fish weight in the cage. Simply multiply
the number of fingerlings by the average weight of the fingerlings.
For example, a cage stocked with 1,000 fingerlings weighing 20
grams each will have a total fish weight of 20 kilos. With a feeding
rate of 5 percent, the amount of feed to be given is one kilo per day.

Two feedings a day are done. One-half of the total feed for the
day is given in the morning between 6 and 8 o'clock and the other
half in the afternoon between 4 and 6 o'clock.
FRESHWATER FARMING 214

SUPPLEMENTAL FEED MAKES TILAPIA

GROW FASTER, MORE NUTRITIOUS

Tilapia mossambica grows faster and are more nutritious if

given supplemental feeds. The supplemental feed need not be
expensive.

This according to researchers of the SEAFDEC Aquaculture

Department's Freshwater Fisheries Station in Binangonan, Rizal.

Ingredients for the supplemental feed are available locally. It

is composed of 60 percent rice bran, 20 percent ipil-ipil leaf meal,
and 20 percent fish meal. Given this feed, tilapia stocked at 75
pieces per square meter in floating cages in Laguna Lake grew faster
and were found to have a higher protein content. Moreover, the feed
conversion is better - you will need only four kilograms of the feed
to produce one kilogram of tilapia flesh.

With this performance, the recommended feed is far better

than other supplemental feeds such as the one consisting of 30 per-
cent chopped snails and 70 percent rice bran. However, giving no
supplemental feed at all results in much lower growth rate.

SOME TIPS ON TILAPIA FARMING

IN FRESHWATER

From studies conducted at the Freshwater Aquaculture Center

of Central Luzon State University (CLSU) in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija,
here are some tips on tilapia farming:

* The larger the fingerlings stocked the greater the recovery

and total production. The study showed, for instance, that 5-gram
fingerlings had an average recovery of only 49 percent and average
yield of 67.5 kilograms per hectare while 13-gram fingerlings had an
average of 84.3 percent recovery and an average yield of 188 kilo-
grams per hectare. It is also interesting to note that the stocking size
of 19 grams attained the harvestable size of 50 grams after 69 culture
days.
215 TILAPIA

* Japanese snail meal can replace two-thirds of the fish meal in

the ration of Nile tilapia. Another good substitute, horse meat meal,
gave better weight gain and feed conversion when given as a complete
replacement of fish meal.

* All-male Nile tilapia can be grown together with milkfish

without affecting the growth and production of milkfish because
there is no competition for food between milkfish and Nile tilapia.
Stocking of Nile tilapia at 2,000 fingerlings per hectare with milkfish
at 5,000 per hectare and mudfish at 100 per hectare gave the highest
gain in weight of fish. Mudfish is stocked to control possible increase
of tilapia due to reproduction in the event that manual sexing would
not result to 100 percent male.

* Addition of supplemental feeds like rice bran and copra meal

increased the net production in a polyculture system involving milk-
fish and all-male Nile tilapia. It is suggested that in places where an
agricultural by-product is abundant and cheap, its use as a supple-
mental feed should be tried.

SOURCE: Inland Fisheries Project - Philippines, Technical Reports No. 12 & 13.

FOR BIGGER TILAPIA, CONTROL

THEIR POPULATION

Large tilapia always fetch a better price and sell faster. Get
good yields of big tilapia by controlling their population in the
pond or cage. Tilapia can reproduce very rapidly that if you don't
keep down their population, all you can harvest are plenty of small
fish.

A practical way to control tilapia reproduction is to harvest

before they breed or lay eggs. This is done two months after stocking
of fry in the case of Java tilapia and three months for Nile tilapia.
This method applies well for Nile tilapia as the species reaches
market size (at least 50 grams) before it lay eggs. However, this
method is practicable only for small-scale production.

A new technique has been developed - artificial sex reversal -

which manipulates the sex that the small and still sex-less tilapia
FRESHWATER FARMING 216

will finally assume by feeding them with male hormone. The syn-
thetic male hormone is fed to the fry during the stage of their life
when they are still without sex. This hormone directs the would-
be females to become males. Hence, no reproduction in the group
occurs.

This method requires some training on the techniques as well

as a fair amount of capital investment on the facilities needed to
work it out.

SOURCE: Philippines Recommends for Tilapia 1976, PCARR, Los Baños, Laguna.

TILAPIA REARED DURING WARMER MONTHS

REACH MARKET SIZE RAPIDLY

February and March are good months to stock tilapia finger-

lings, according to former fisheries commissioner Andres Mane, a
tilapia farmer himself. Fingerlings stocked during these months
reach market size -- about 10 pieces to a kilo - in four to five
months, said Mr. Mane. However, if the rearing period goes through
the colder months of December and January, the fish would need
seven to eight months to grow to the same size.

Mane provides the following tips for the cage rearing of tilapia:

Transport fingerlings (3-5 cm long) from nursery ponds to fish

cages in oxygenated plastic bags or tin tubs (bañera) of 500-liter
capacity. Stocking rate is 20 to 25 fingerlings per square meter.
You can double the stocking rate to 50 per square meter with supple-
mental feeding. Stock during the early morning or late afternoon
hours.

To a great extent, lake grown tilapia in cages feed on the natural

foods in the lake. However, you may have to give fine rice bran
and kangkong leaves if natural food is scarce. Scatter the rice bran
in small amounts in the morning. Place kangkong leaves in patches
inside the cages. Replenish the feed supply when much of it has
been eaten.
217 TILAPIA

TILAPIA SOLD LIVE BRINGS A HIGHER PRICE

Live tilapia commands higher price. This according to a veteran

tilapia raiser, former fisheries commissioner Andres Mane of Los
Baños, Laguna. Tilapia marketed alive usually sells for twice as much
as dead tilapia, he says.

To harvest tilapia so that they can be kept alive longer,

Mr. Mane recommends the following procedure:

Concentrate fish ready for harvesting in one corner of the cage.

This is done by pulling up the net after it is detached from the bam-
boo frame.

Scoop the fish with a long-handled scoop net into the container
which is usually a tin tub (bañera) or a styrofoam box filled to one-
fifth its capacity with fresh water.

Cover the container with net or wood to keep the fish from
jumping out. Change the water in the container very often. In this
condition you can keep the fish alive for as long as four to six hours
after which they gradually weaken and die.
 218

Miscellaneous
information

TILAPIA RAISERS NEED MORE

GOVERNMENT ATTENTION

The tilapia industry needs more government support, according

to a SEAFDEC-PCARR study of the 1974 operations of 131 tilapia
pond operators in the Philippines mostly in Luzon specifically
Cagayan, Isabela, Central Luzon, and Southern Luzon.

The study revealed that while bangos farms averaged about 11

hectares, tilapia farms were mostly below one hectare. Further-
more, most tilapia farmers raised the fish as part-time job. They
spent about 1.5 months in the fishpond with most of their time
spent in other occupation in order to supplement the food require-
ment of the family and earn additional cash income.

Most tilapia farmers interviewed agreed that the government

could help the industry through credit and technical assistance.
They cited as major problems improper construction of pond gates
and dikes, flood and water pollution, low supply of fingerlings,
credit unavailability, red tape in processing loan applications, insu-
fficiency of capital, and high cost of inputs.

Raising tilapia with other fishes was found to be more profitable

than monoculture, or raising tilapia alone. Tilapia-carp farms ob-
tained a profit of P942 per half-hectare compared with P402 per
half-hectare in monoculture farms.

Fertilization is not a common practice in tilapia ponds. Only

30 percent in monoculture ponds and 47 percent in polyculture
ponds practiced fertilization. Of these, the majority fertilized the
pond only when needed, the rest did so before stocking or regularly
once a month. The usual practice is to apply chicken manure every
20-30 days.
219 TILAPIA

The study showed that fertilization and supplemental feeding

proved to be advantageous. Fertilization increased average yields
in monoculture farms to 677 kilos per half-hectare or four times
that obtained in non-fertilized ponds. Fertilized tilapia-carp fish-
ponds yielded an average of 599 kg, or three times as much as non-
fertilized ponds.

Both monoculture and polyculture farms which applied supple-

mental feeds netted more than five times the amount obtained by
non-users of supplemental feeds.

FISHPOND IN THE FOREST

In the forests of Pagbilao, Quezon, Tilapia nilotica is being

successfully raised in fishponds built at the sides of creeks.

This was reported by M.L. Generalao and P.R. Garcia of

the Forest Research Institute's Agro-Forestry Research Center
in Pagbilao, Quezon.

The scheme is simple and inexpensive, Generalao reported.

At a cost of not more than P300, a farmer can put up a fishpond
with an area of 300 sq m and a depth of 1 to 1-1/2 meters. The
design is similar to the "loong," built by fishermen near a river.
The only difference is that, in the forest, this fishpond is at a higher
elevation while the "loong," as the term is used in Southern Luzon,
is at a lower elevation.

Although other fishes such as bangos, dalag, hito and shrimps

can also be grown, Generalao and Garcia, said that BFAR technicians
in Quezon have recommended Tilapia because it thrives well. A
young tilapia grows 30 to 40 cm in a year and feeds on the natural
food found in the mountain streams. Another advantage of tilapia
is that it multiplies rapidly, spawning 5 to 6 times a year, according
to the agro-forestry researchers.

The encouraging initial experience with the Pagbilao fishpond

has prompted the Forest Research Institute to expand the project
in connection with its agro-forestry research and development prog-
ram, Generalao reported.

SOURCE: "Planting Fish in the Forest," M.L. Generalao and P.R. Garcia, Canopy. 4:10,
Forest Research Institute, Los Baños, Laguna.