The Cultivation of the Mullet

There is an old Chinese saying that "One sows, another reaps." PremierChiang Ching-kuo used those words to encourage Dr. I-Chiu Liao and his research team at the Tungkang Marine Laboratory, one of several such labs of the Taiwan Fisheries Research Institute. Scientists have been working quietly at the secluded countryside location in southeast Taiwan on the development of the Republic of China's fish culture. They also aim at raising the nation's international position in marine products. In recent years the Tungkang Marine Laboratory made a break-through in the artificial propagation of grey mullet. This is one of the major fishes in Taiwan and has a very high economic value. Its roe is considered especially delicious, and has become a substantial source of foreign exchange. The grey mullet thrives in most areas of the temperate and the tropical zones of the world. This fish is easily raised because it is cold-resistant and able to live in both fresh and sea water.

Back in 1963, a "research team for the artificial propagation of grey mullet" was organized by the Taiwan Fisheries Research Institute, the Institute of Fishery Biology and the Fishery Bureau. The first experiments were made at Sanwei, Kaohsiung. The project was moved further south in 1968 to the Tungkang Marine Laboratory, Pingtung. Spawner fish used in artificial propagation usually are big mullets caught both in the open sea and pond-grown. Mullets raised in ponds must be injected with hormones and vitamin E for induced spawning. The eggs are manually squeezed and mixed with milt inartificial fertilization. When the fertilized eggs are put into tanks to hatch, high oxygen content and the lowest changes of water temperatures must be maintained.

The tiny newly-hatched mullet larvae reach about3 cm in length after 45 days. They are stronger than the natural larvae captured in the sea, and also have more power of resistance to the environment. They then are put into tanks for raising. In 1975, the project of artificial propagation of mullet achieved the aim of "Complete Culture." That meant that a new generation of mullet larvae was hatched successfully from adult fish that were themselves artificially spawned. The fingerlings produced in the laboratory's tanks were significantly stronger and more disease resistant than those of the same age caught in the open sea. A researcher said that thebenefits of "Complete Culture" are multiple: 1. To brighten the future of large-size pond-grown spawners. 2. To offer experience and assistance to fish raisers and in species improvement. 3. To lead other countries in the same research field.