ABSTRACT
The Asian seabass, Lates calcarifer, or popularly known as barramundi in Australia, belongs to the family Latidae. Seabass are considered as one of the most important species for fi sheries and aquaculture and are widely distributed in the Indo-West Pacifi c. They are euryhaline and are found in freshwater, estuarine, and coastal areas and then migrate downstream for spawning. Seabass are protandrous hermaphrodites, fi rst maturing as males and then undergoing sex inversion to become females later in life. Spawning of seabass is seasonal and varies depending on geographical location, with latitudinal variation in spawning season thought to be related to temperature and maybe photoperiod. Spawning occurs in river mouths, estuaries or coastal areas, and is usually associated with incoming tides and the lunar cycle. Seabass are tolerant of a wide range of physiological conditions and the females are highly fecund. These attributes have helped trigger interest in the aquaculture of the species which started in Thailand in the early 1970s and rapidly spread throughout Southeast Asia.
