Catla

Catla catla

Catla (Catla catla), also called major carp or Indian major carp in aquaculture contexts, is a large South Asian freshwater fish native to river systems of the Indian subcontinent. It has a deep body, broad head, upturned mouth, and a feeding style focused largely on plankton in the upper water column when young and in culture ponds. Catla is commonly raised with rohu and mrigal because the three use different feeding zones, making traditional polyculture more efficient than stocking one species alone.

People manage catla mainly for food production in ponds, reservoirs, hatcheries, and integrated carp farms. Successful culture depends on good seed quality, balanced stocking density, fertilization or feed programs that support plankton, stable dissolved oxygen, and harvest timing before growth slows. Hatcheries use induced breeding and careful fry rearing because natural river spawning is hard to replicate in small ponds. Farmers also watch disease, water exchange, predators, and escape during floods. For buyers and markets, catla is valued as a familiar table fish rather than an ornamental aquarium species.