As B. gonionotus has higher survival rates and growth rates and fetches higher
market prices than O. niloticus and C. carpio, the species is a favorite among rice –
fish farmers (Nhan et al., unpublished results). However, as rice field-based B.
gonionotus research is scarce and seemingly contradictory (compare Haroon, 1998;
Rothuis et al., 1998b), extension discourse on B. gonionotus culture in rice fields is
often confounding, illogic and based on hearsay information obtained from a few
successful farmers. Some of the pertinent questions are: (1) whether B. gonionotus
growth is favored or restricted during any of the rice phases, (2) whether intraspecific
competition limits the growth of B. gonionotus in macrophyte-abundant rice fields, and
(3) whether there is any interspecific competition between B. gonionotus and any of
the other species in the polyculture.