The area is characterized by an annual rainfall of
approximately 1600 mm year±1 and about
2500 hours of sunshine year±1. There are two
main seasons: a dry season from December to mid-
May and a wet season from mid-May to November.
The region is also characterized by yearly ¯ooding
(0.5±1 m depth) from August to November, during
which rice cropping is impossible and fish culture
hazardous. Farming in the Co Do area is characterized
by an intensive direct-seeded double rice
cropping system: a Dong-Xuan crop (dry season,
December±March) and a He-Thu crop (wet season,
May±August). In rice±fish farms, the He-Thu crop is
followed by a .