White Pole Sea Bass

White Pole Sea Bass

White Pole Sea Bass is a protected geographical indication product.

　　A flagship product of Baijiao Town, Doumen District, Zhuhai City. The "White Pole Sea Bass" is the Japanese seabass (Lateolabrax japonicus), belonging to the order Perciformes, family Serranidae, and genus Lateolabrax. The ancient poet Fan Zhongyan once praised its form and flavor with the verse: “People come and go on the river, but all love the beauty of sea bass; look at that little boat, appearing and disappearing amid the wind and waves…”

　　Physiological Habits

　　It has an elongated, laterally compressed body with both dorsal and ventral sides being bluntly rounded; the head is of moderate size and slightly pointed. The snout is pointed, the mouth is large, terminal, and oblique, with the upper jaw extending to below the rear edge of the eye. Both jaws, vomer, and palatine bones are equipped with fine teeth. The posterior edge of the preopercle has fine serrations, and its lower hind angle bears three large spines, while the posterior end of the opercle has one spine. The scales are small, and the lateral line is complete and straight. There are two dorsal fins, connected only at the base; the first dorsal fin has 12 hard spines, and the second has one hard spine and 11–13 soft rays. The body is gray on the back, with silvery-gray sides and belly. The upper part of the body and the dorsal fin have black spots, which decrease in number as the fish ages. It prefers to inhabit brackish waters at estuaries, but can also live in freshwater. It mainly swims in the middle and lower layers of the water, and sometimes dives to the bottom to forage. Fry feed on plankton, juvenile fish mainly eat shrimp, while adults primarily prey on other fish. Mature broodstock are generally individuals around three years old, with a body length of about 600 mm. The breeding season occurs in late autumn, and spawning grounds are located in estuarine brackish water zones. It grows rapidly and reaches a large size, typically weighing between 1.5–2.5 kg, with the largest individuals exceeding 15 kg. Its meat is delicious. Both the gills and flesh are used medicinally. The gills, with a sweet and neutral nature, help relieve coughs and dissolve phlegm, and can be used to treat whooping cough in children. The flesh, with a sweet and warm nature, strengthens the spleen and benefits qi, often used to treat chronic stomach pain, spleen deficiency diarrhea, childhood malnutrition, indigestion, emaciation, and also promotes wound healing after surgery.

　　II. Announcement on the Implementation of Geographic Indication Product Protection

　　Protected Area

　　The protected area for White Pole Sea Bass as a geographic indication product covers the entire administrative region of Doumen District, Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province, located between 113°05′ and 113°25′ east longitude, and 21°59′ and 22°25′ north latitude.