ASIAN

SEA BASS

Lates
calcarifer

COMMON LOCAL NAMES:

Kakap
Apahap
Bulgan
Salongsong
Katuyot
Matang pusa

General Biology
and Natural
Distribution

 elongated and compressed body with a

pointed head
its mouth is large and slightly oblique, with
its upper jaw reaching behind the eye. Its
teeth arevilli form with no canine teeth
present.
Its colour has two phases. For juveniles, it
is usually either olive brown above with
silver sides at the belly in marine
environment or golden brown in freshwater
environment. For adults, it is blue green or
greyish above and silver below.

 Its dorsal fin has 7 to 9 spines and 10

to 11 soft rays with a very deep
notch almost dividing the spiny part
from the soft part of fin. Its pectoral
fin is short and rounded with several
short, strong serrations above its
base. The dorsal and anal fins both
have scaly sheath. The anal fin is
round, with three spines and 78 soft
rays. Its caudal fin is also rounded.

Male and Female Sea Bass

 Asian sea bass is widely distributed

in tropical and sub-tropical areas of
the Western Pacific and Indian
Ocean, between longitude 50E 160W and latitude 24N 25S. It
occurs throughout the northern part
of Asia, southward to Queensland in
Australia, and westward to East
Africa (FAO 1974).

Geographic distribution of Lates

calcarifer (After FAO 1974)

Habitat, Diet,
and
Environmental

 fish spawns according to the lunar

cycle (usually at the onset of the new
moon or the full moon) during late
evening (18002000 hours) usually in
synchrony with the incoming tide
regarded as a voracious carnivore,
juveniles are omnivores
parameters normally considered as
suitable water supply: pH of 7.5-8.5;
Dissolved oxygen of 4-9ppm; Salinity
10-30ppt; Temperature of 26-32C;
NH3 less than 1 ppm; Turbidity less
than 10 ppm; and H2S less than 0.3

 advantageous if the selected site will

be mapped topographically to reduce
development and operational costs
such as for water pumping. The soil
at the proposed site should have
enough clay content to ensure that
the pond can hold water. Area with
acid sulphate soil should be avoided

Reproduction,
seed production,
and life cycle

 Asian seabass is a protandrous

hermaphrodite
- from being male at their early
stage they become female upon
reaching maturity
Maturation process
- simulation of the environmental
conditions
- injection of hormones responsible
for maturation and spawning

 Selection of breeders
- male fish paired with a female fish
- rubs its dorsal surface against the
area of the female's genital papilla
- gradual swelling of the abdomen
will be seen
Spawning
- release of sexual gametes
- occurs 3438 hours after injection
- over 1-3 million eggs per spawn

 Fertilization
- happens externally
- fertilized eggs float on the surface
- about 74-80mm in diameter
- fertilization is about 70-90 %
- collected fertilized eggs are
transferred in incubation tanks
Hatching
- fertilized eggs hatch in seawater of
27C after 17 to 18 hours
- hatching success is about 80%
- transferred carefully to rearing
tanks

 Nursery
- larvaes become juveniles after 3
weeks
- located at rivers or coastal areas
- participate in spawning after 3 or 4
years (broodstocks)

Production cycle of Asian seabass

 peak season for spawning is during

full moon or new moon days
in the Philippines, the peak season of
seabass spawning is from late June to
late October
Asian seabass is an euryhaline
creature
- canlive in both fresh and salt
water
- seabass eggs and larvae will only
survive in brackish or salt water

Life cycle of Asian

Aquaculture
Status and
Potential

 Region 6 wherein sea bass fingerlings

were widely sold and cultured has a
total production fluctuating between
20000 to 26000 tons from 1995 to
2003.
Negros Occidental, Batangas, and
Bulacan started a pond culture
having a rate of 1500-2500/ha, and
sea bass: tilapia ratio ranges from
1:0 to 1:15. Puerto Princesa, Laguna
Lake in Laguna, and Paoan Lake in
Ilocos Norte also started culturing
sea bass by cage culture; the latter

 Zarraga, Ilo-ilo, sea bass pond

cultured is successful.
The primary buyers of sea bass are
hotels and restaurants
Asian sea bass tastes like groupers
which is one of delectable fish in the
cuisine.
Culturing Asian sea bass is indeed
has a high potential in Philippines
setting

 Rene B. Bocaya, the national sales

manager of Finfish Hatcheries
Incorporated (FHI) foresaw that sea
bass will be the next big thing in the
aquaculture industry. It is just a
matter of showing to the investors
the profitability of culturing it.
Culture of sea bass attracting
aquaculture industry lacks
established techniques in pond growout. Fish farmers usually apply
methods available or self-developed
practices

Asian Sea Bass

Culture System
and Practices

 Hatchery
The tanks need to be 3-25 tons in
capacity depending on the number of
the newly-hatched eggs, in which 30
larvae per liter should be stocked.
In this stage, the larvae can be fed with
either natural food like rotifers, which
are microscopic aquatic animals, or
formulated food.
The larvae can be kept in the hatchery
until metamorphosis or the larvae are
15-21 years old (1.0-1.5 cm). Fifty to
seventy percent of the larvae can
survive in the hatchery.

Seabass hatchery tank

Lay-out of seabass
hatchery

 Nursery
The nursery can be earthen ponds, landbased tanks, or net cages (hapa) set in
ponds.
Before stocking of the sea bass fry, the
ponds should be prepared and fertilized
for about 10-20 days.
First Phase
Natural food like zooplankton, mysids,
and mosquito larvae or formulated diet
can be given to the fry. Lights are
recommended to draw out zooplanktons
and encourage the fish to feed during
night-time. Grading must be done every

 The fish in the nursery can already be

harvested or transferred, depending on
the purpose, if the total length is 2.5cm.

Second Phase
the juveniles should be fed six times a
day, trash fish and formulated diet can
be used as food
Juveniles are graded and tanks are
cleaned every 5-7 days. The fish can be
harvested when the length is already 710 cm and the weight is 20-50 g.

Grading vessel for grading of

seabass fry

 Grow-out
the fish can be fed two to three times a
day, the fish food can be trash fish or
by-catch at 5-10% biomass or
formulated diet at 3-5% biomass.
The sea bass will grow for 4-7 months
and can have marketable size of 300600 g.
pond culture, it is recommended to
stock 5,000 pcs/ ha and the water
change at 40-60% daily
cage culture, the recommended size is
5x5x3 m with a stock of 15-20 pcs/m3.

FLOW CHART
OF SEA BASS
CULTURE

Economics of
Production

 According to SEAFDEC (2008), for a

P2,400,00 investment the expected
returns are as shown in Table 1 at the
Appendix.
a) Expected gross revenues
P6,300,000
b) Internal Rate of Return (IRR) 181%
- 5-year discounted cash flow
analysis at 10% discount rate
c) Return on Investment 214%
d) Net Present Value (NPV)
P15,600,000

Item

Quantit Unit

y
Revenue (per run)
Larvae (Million)
3
Fry (pcs) (15 days 400,000

Price

12,000
0.3

Value

36,000
120,000

old)
Fingerlings (pc) 150,000 6

900,000

(1-inch)
Revenue (annual -6

runs)
Larvae (M)
Fry (pcs)
Fingerlings (pc)

216,000
720,000
5,400,00

0
6,336,00

1,500
70

31,500
79,380
150,000

Total

Annual

Revenue
Less:
Variable costs:
Broodstock
Feeds (Hatchery)
Fertilizers/feeds
(Nursery)

21
1,134

Supplies

and

81,500

materials
Fuel and oil
Total variable cost
Fixed Cost

Manpower

120,000
462,380

salaries
Aquaculturists
Hatchery
Nursery

Security,

5
1

11,535
11,535

173,025
34,605
51,480

40,000

195,550
240,206
734,866
1,197,24

6
5,138,75

Utility, Driver

Repair

and

maintenance
Depreciation
Cost of capital
Total fixed cost
Total annual cost
Income before tax

 live sea bass ranges from P250-P400

per kilogram, which depends on the
size (300-500g) while the frozen or
fresh sea bass ranges from P150P200 per kilogram
in just six months P125,000can be
the generated income from sea bass
culture

SOURCES:
A. R. Thirunavukkarasu, M. Kailasam, and J. K. Sundaray. (1998). Success in
hatchery development of seabass and its potential for commercial cage
culture in India. Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture. Retrieved
June 6, 2011 from http://www.aquaculturefish.com
P. Kungvankij, L.B. Tiro, Jr., B.J. Pudadera, Jr., and I.O. Potesta. (1985). Biology
and culture of sea bass (Latescalcarifer) Training Manual.Food and
Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved June 6, 2011 from
http://www.fao.org/ docrep/field/003/AC230E/AC230E00.htm
P. Dhert, P. Lavens, and P. Sorgeloos. (1992). State of the art of Asian
seabasslarviculture.Journal of the World Aquaculture Society. Retrieved June
6, 2011 from http://www.jwas.org

S. Khaimesh and P. Girija. (1986). Culture technology forLates
calcarifer.Central Institute of Fisheries Education in India. Retrieved June 6,
2011 from http://www.sehgal.cife@gmail.com
SEAFDEC Aquaculture Department.Southeast Asian Fisheries Development
Center. Retrieved June 28, 2010 from http://www.seafdec.org.ph
SEAFDEC. (2007). Sea bass culture.Tigbauan, Iloilo: SEAFDEC Aquaculture
Department.Retrieved, June 16, 2011 from
http://www.seafdec.org.ph/publications _downloadable.html.
SEAFDEC. (2008). Sea bass: From research to field verification to technology
adoptation. Tigbauan, Iloilo: SEAFDEC Aquaculture. Retrieved, June 16, 2011
fromhttp://www.seafdec.org.ph/pdf/commodities/seabass_hatchery.html
Yap, Wilfredo et.al (2007). Aquaculture in Asia-Pacific and the Outlook for

THANK YOU
AND
GOD BLESS!