Polycultural System of Freshwater Fish in China

China is a country in which fish culture is closely integrated with conventional agriculture. Its success depends on the firm base of traditional practices as well as the introduction of many innovations. Among them, polyculture is probably the most important reason for fish culture's success. The major advantage of polyculture is to utilize fully the space and food available in the pond and to optimize interactions between compatible species with different feeding habits and ecology. The different types of polycultural pond stocking are adapted in accordance with (1) the climate, (2) quality of water supply and fertility of pond, (3) availability of fish fry and fingerlings, (4) availability of food and fertilizer, and (5) market requirements. The artificial propagation of cultured fishes and large-scale production of fry and fingerlings are the major development of Chinese fish culture in recent years. The application of LH–RH analogue as a new highly effective ovulating agent for fish reproduction has ...