Establishing a mangrove nursery

Mangroves play an important role in creating habitats for a diverse community of organisms ranging from bacteria and fungi to fishes and mammals. They grow in intertidal flats, estuaries and offshore islands. In the Philippines, mangrove forests have dramatically decreased in area since the start of the century, and therefore there is a need to reforest. However, first mangrove nurseries must be established since they serve as sources of planting materials for different mangrove species. Furthermore, nurseries would mean a sustainable source of livelihood for coastal communities because of continuous demand for propagules. A brief account is given of procedures as to the establishment of a mangrove nursery, describing the construction of a nursery, preparation of potting materials, seed collection, seed sowing, and maintenance and protection. Details are provided of the most common true mangrove species in the Philippines. The mangrove nursery is a place for raising and tending seedlings until they are ready for permanent planting. The establishment of mangrove nurseries is in line with government s efforts to rehabilitate the coastal and mangrove ecosystems.

Farming the seaweed Kappaphycus

Seaweed farming is the top foreign exchange earner for the Philippines. Kappaphycus constitutes 80% of the Philippine seaweed export. It is sold in both fresh and dried forms; although dried seaweed has a greater demand, fresh seaweed is highly prices in restaurants. The 3 main seaweed products marketed are agar, alginate and carrageenan. A brief outline is given of farming operations and investment costs and returns.

Aquaculture of the mangrove red snapper

Mangrove red snapper (Lutjanus argentimaculatus) is an important marketable species throughout the Indo-Pacific region. It is a euryhaline species; it can tolerate freshwater, brackishwater and marine water. Modular culture is the common system in snapper production in the Philippines. Stocking density is 4,000 fry per cropping; there could be 2 croppings per year. Brief details are given of investment costs and returns for culture in brackishwater pens.

Milkfish grow-out culture in ponds

Milkfish farming is regarded as the backbone of Philippine aquaculture. In 2001, nearly 50% of the Philippines' aquaculture production was milkfish cultured from brackishwater ponds. It has 3 major culture systems: extensive; semi-intensive and intensive. A brief outline is given of the stocking and feeding procedures, providing also some details as to investment costs and returns.

Shrimp (Penaeus monodon Fabricius) production in brackishwater ponds applied varying fertilizer combinations

Details are given of the production of Penaeus monodon in the Philippines reared in brackishwater earthen ponds applied with different fertilizer combinations, namely diammonium phosphate, urea and chicken manure. Results show that the shrimp showed higher yields in fertilized ponds, but increasing the concentration of fertilizers did not give a marked increase in yield - the excess fertilizer was wasted.

Technology for the community: SEAFDEC-designed artificial reefs

An account is given of the fabrication and deployment of artificial reefs used in the SEAFDEC/AQD's Community Fishery Resource Management project, which focused on Malalison Island located in west Central Philippines. The project aimed to apply community-based techniques of fishery resource management through the collaboration of community organizations, biologists and social scientists. The 3 types of reefs (building blocks, concrete pipe culvert, and modified concrete pipe culvert) were deployed at Gui-ob reef covering an area of less than 1 ha.

Integrated farming is profitable

Growing fish with rice while maximizing land use can bring advantages to both crops as production is intensified. Details are given of the basic structure of rice field aquaculture, listing the major advantages and disadvantages of this system. Particular reference is made to the integrated farms at Culasi, Antique (Western Philippines) and at Barangay Igcocolo, Guimbal, Iloilo where agricultural crops other than rice are integrated with fish farming (tilapia -- Oreochromis mossambicus) and livestock rearing. An account is also given of the system at the AQD site at New Busuang, Kalibo, Aklan which evaluates the economic feasibility and profitability of farming mudcrab in tidal flats with existing mangroves.

Ecological limits of high-density milkfish farming

In the Philippines at present, milkfish farming in ponds includes a wide range of intensities, systems and practices. To make aquaculture possible, ecosystems are used as sources of energy and resources and as sinks for wastes. The growth of aquaculture is limited by the life-support functions of the ecosystem, and sustainability depends on matching the farming techniques with the processes and functions of the ecosystems, for example, by recycling some degraded resources. The fish farm has many interactions with the external environment. Serious environmental problems may be avoided if high-intensity farms are properly planned in the first place, at the farm level and at the level of the coastal zone where it can be integrated with other uses by other sectors. It is believed that the key to immediate success in the mass production of milkfish for local consumption and for export of value-added forms may be in semi-intensive farming at target yields of 3 tons per ha per year, double the current national average. Intensive milkfish farming will be limited by environmental, resource and market constraints. Integrated intensive farming systems are the appropriate long-term response to the triple needs of the next century: more food, more income, and more jobs for more people, all from less land, less resources, and less non-renewable energy.

Seaweed markets in southeast Asia

World seaweed production has steadily increased over the years. The 3 main commercial phycocolloids or processed chemical products from seaweeds marketed in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines are agar, alginate and carageenan. A brief account is given of the production of these products in Southeast Asia.

The Philippine seaweed industry

A brief outline is given of the Philippine seaweed industry, which involves mainly the red seaweed Kappaphycus alvarezii, produced as a source of the semi-refined or Philippine natural grade (PNG) carrageenan. Other species cultured and marketed include: Gracilaria changii, G. firma, G. heteroclada, G. manilaensis and G. tenuistipitata. The Philippines has the largest carrageenan refinery in Asia. However, production of seaweeds is rather erratic, which is attributed to the following factors: 1) indiscriminate harvesting, seasonal abundance of different species in different areas and lack of proper management; 2) shortage and deteriorating quality of seedlings, especially for Kappaphycus; and 3) natural calamities.

Knowing Asian aquaculture and fisheries

An outline is given of aquaculture practices in Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand, which included freshwater, brackishwater and marine systems.

Economic value of the milkfish industry

A brief description is given of the milkfish (Chanos chanos) farming industry in the Philippines. Over the past 20 years, the relative importance of milkfish has declined with the expansion of tilapia, tiger shrimp and seaweed farming. In 1975, some 141,461 mt of milkfish made up 10% of the total fish production, whereas in 1995, the total milkfish harvest of 150,858 mt made up only 5.5% of the total fish production. Milkfish are harvested and marketed mostly fresh or chilled, whole or deboned, but some are canned or smoked. The domestic markets, mainly in Metro Manila, absorb most of the production. Milkfish is also absorbed in different product forms: dried, canned, smoked, or marinated. An export market for quick-frozen deboned milkfish fillets has begun to develop and fish processing companies are responding fast. The milkfish farming industry has important linkages with the various sectors that supply the inputs, and those that transport, store, market or process the harvest. For intensive milkfish farming to be both profitable and sustainable, more value-added products must be developed and marketed.

The Sargeant fish and the eel

The culture of sargeant fish, or cobia (Rachycentron canadum) and eel (Anguilla spp) in the Philippines is discussed. Market potentials for the cultured products are examined.

Crocodile farming: a multi-million dollar industry

Crocodiles have a long breeding life, which ranges from 25-30 years. There are 27 species and subspecies of crocodiles throughout the world, 18 of which are in danger of extinction, the rest being threatened with declining population due to overhunting and habitat destruction. Two known crocodile species exist in the Philippines: Crocodylus mindorensis (freshwater crocodile) and C. porosus (saltwater crocodile). Killing adult crocodiles, as is being done now, drastically reduces the potential population. Moreover, toxic wastes from mines, destruction of marshes and riverine habitats, and the conversion of their natural habitats for fishponds additionally threaten their populations. Estimates indicate that there are only about 100 Philippine crocodiles in the wild now. The Crocodile Farming Institute (CFI) was established in Palawan, in 1987, in order to save the crocodiles from extinction in the Philippines. It is now one of the components of the Palawan Wildlife and Conservation Center, and aims to conserve the 2 endangered species in the Philippines and also to develop and introduce a suitable crocodile farming technology that will help uplift the socio-economic well-being of the Filipino people. CFI believes in the potential of commercial utilization of crocodiles as a dollar-generating industry for the Philippines. It is a very profitable business and could be a multi-million dollar industry. A brief outline is given of the economic and marketing potentials of farming crocodiles in the Philippines.

Agiis: a bivalve cultivated as live shrimp feed

Live 'agiis' have been proven to be a good feed for shrimp for the past ten years by polyculture fish farmers in the province of Capiz, in the island of Panay, west central Philippines. A brief account is given of culture and feeding operations. Its cultivation period is short and seeds are readily available. It can reduce dependence on trash fish which is now getting to be scarce; it also seems much cheaper. Perhaps this fast-growing tiny bivalve can be scientifically investigated by students of aquaculture as feed for other commercial aquaculture species. Its scientific identification can be a good start.