Proceedings of the Twenty-third Annual Symposium on sea turtle biology and conservation, 17 to 21 March 2003, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The 23rd Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation was held between 17 and 21 March 2003 at The Legend Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, hosted by the Community Conservation Network, Hawaii, and WWF-Malaysia. The meeting was attended by slightly more than 300 participants representing 73 countries, a dramatic drop in participation from previous years brought about in no small part by the looming war in the middle east region and concerns over travel safety. For 22 years the Symposium had bee an Americas-based event, even though it is the annual gathering of the "international" sea turtle society, and with the move to Malaysia, the Symposium hoped to raise the awareness among the general public of the plight of amrine turtles in Southeast Asia, and share the enormous exspertise of the world authorities on sea turtles with this so-far underrepresented region. Adopting the thems, "Living With Turtles", the Symposium had a very personal flavour, and the smaller number of participants made it possible to make and renew acquaintances, and have time for discussion between sessions. While the travel safety concern excuse was often quoted, it was a pity, particularly to the large contingent of people who attended the event for the first time from underrepresented regions, that many of the household names linked to marine turtle biology and conservation were not present to share their knowledge and promote the global concerns on the plight of turtle populations.

Aquaculture Asia, Vol.14, No.3, pp.1-44, July-September 2009

Sustainable aquaculture Contrasting community management and revenue sharing practices of culture-based fisheries in Lao PDR Saphakdy, B., Phomsouvanh, A., Davy, B., Nguyen, T.T.T. and De Silva, S.S.; Floodplain aquaculture in Begumgonj: New horizon for rural livelihoods in Bangladesh Hossain, M. S.; Promoting small-scale inland aquaculture in Papua New Guinea Edwards, P.; Group approach to shrimp farming: The key to sustainability Kumaran, M.; Research and farming techniques Native catfish culture - a technology package for fish farmers Haniffa, M. A.; An assessment on the influence of salinity in the growth of black clam (Villorita cyprinoides) in cages in Cochin estuary with a special emphasis on the impact of Thennermukkom Salinity Barrier Arun, A. U.; Aquatic animal health EUS in Asia and Africa: Stimulus for regional initiatives!!! Mohan, C.V. Marine Finfish Aquaculture Network Offshore opportunities for artisanal aquaculture Stock, C.; Grouper aquaculture in Brazil Sanches, E.G. and Von Seckendorff, R.W. NACA Newsletter

Climatological data in Mexico [abstract]

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): This is a previous presentation of what has been observed in points spread in Mexico. The existing data amount is large enough that an atlas was given out in 1977. This atlas has information which goes back to the beginning of the country. The original data sets from which this atlas was issued exist in a variety of storage forms ranging from simple paper blocks up to books and magnetic tapes.

Food habits of Sowerby's beaked whales (Mesoplodon bidens) taken in the pelagic drift gillnet fishery of the western North Atlantic

We describe the food habits of the Sowerby’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon bidens) from observations of 10 individuals taken as bycatch in the pelagic drift gillnet fishery for Swordfish (Xiphias gladius) in the western North Atlantic and 1 stranded individual from Kennebunk, Maine. The stomachs of 8 bycaught whales were intact and contained prey. The diet of these 8 whales was dominated by meso- and benthopelagic fishes that composed 98.5% of the prey items found in their stomachs and cephalopods that accounted for only 1.5% of the number of prey. Otoliths and jaws representing at least 31 fish taxa from 15 families were present in the stomach contents. Fishes, primarily from the families Moridae (37.9% of prey), Myctophidae (22.9%), Macrouridae (11.2%), and Phycidae (7.2%), were present in all 8 stomachs. Most prey were from 5 fish taxa: Shortbeard Codling (Laemonema barbatulum) accounted for 35.3% of otoliths, Cocco’s Lanternfish (Lobianchia gemellarii) contributed 12.9%, Marlin-spike (Nezumia bairdii) composed 10.8%, lanternfishes (Lampanyctus spp.) accounted for 8.4%; and Longfin Hake (Phycis chesteri) contributed 6.7%. The mean number of otoliths per stomach was 1196 (range: 327–3452). Most of the fish prey found in the stomachs was quite small, ranging in length from 4.0 to 27.7 cm. We conclude that the Sowerby’s beaked whales that we examined in this study fed on large numbers of relatively small meso- and benthopelagic fishes that are abundant along the slope and shelf break of the western North Atlantic.

Organic carbon in the sediments of the lower reaches of Periar River

Sediments are indicators of the quality of water overlying them and hence, useful in the assessment of environmental pollution. Temporal and spatial variations in sediment characteristics and organic carbon content from 9 stations in the lower reaches of Periyar River an area in Cochin Backwater, India which is polluted from different sources were studied for one year during 1981. Variations in colour and texture of sediments were brought about by changes in the grain size and state of oxidation of organic matter. The colour of the sediment varied from greyish black at stations 1 and 2, brownish at station 3, black at stations 4 to 8 and reddish at station 9. Organic carbon and sediment texture showed a direct relationship at all stations except at station 9 where organic carbon content showed an irregular pattern. Overall range of organic carbon content was between 1.19 and 29.6 mg.g super(-1). The mean organic carbon of the stations ranged between 6.8 mg.g super(-1) (station 5) and 20.8 mg.g super(-1) (station 9). On the whole temporal variations were considerable with high values at station 9 and low values at station 5. Fluctuations were more at stations 6, 7 and 8.

A winding machine for "Sekiyama"

During 1964, the offshore fishing station, Cochin, took up a programme of exploratory tuna fishing in the deeper waters off Cochin. A side trawler was converted into a tuna long liner for this purpose.

On a rational criterion for assigning batch number to processed products of shrimps

Investigations were conducted to find the variability of processed shrimps with respect to two quality characteristics, namely, the numbers of deteriorated and discoloured pieces. Samples were collected for three days from two arbitrarily selected processing factories from Cochin at the pre-freezing stages. Results show that both the quality characteristics vary significantly between different size-grades, but while the variation in the number of deteriorated pieces between days is not significant, the variation in the number of discoloured pieces between days is significant.

Towing resistance of ottar [i.e. otter] trawls used for shrimps from small mechanised boats

Attempts have been made to determine the towing resistance of the shrimp otter trawls operated from small trawlers off Cochin and the actual resistance on the warps for eight different boats working under the normal fishing conditions have been measured. Engine Horse Power utilised for towing the gear at normal speed and fishing conditions has also been estimated.

A note on the production trend of marine shrimps in India

The paper reviews the production statistics of marine shrimps in the different maritime states of India from 1950 to 1962. It is pointed out that for a correct appraisal of the status of any fishery, it is necessary to have data on effort E and catch per unit effort in addition to the conventional data on catch C. A relationship between U and E has been developed and the status of the fishery of Metapenaeus dobsoni has been discussed in this connection with reference to the data on catch and effort obtained from trawler operations off Cochin.

Deepwater prawns and lobsters off the Kerala coast

Majority of the prawn catch of the Kerala coast comes from the inshore regions within the 10 fathom line. A bottom deposit formed of fine mud rich in humus is found to be the ideal condition for the penaeid prawns. Similarly the lobster is observed in large numbers at localised areas very near the coast in the crevices of rocks. Though it has been observed that prawns and lobsters exist in deep water as well under different conditions, our knowledge about these forms along the Indian coasts is very scanty, being restricted to the works of Spence Bate, Alcock, De Man and Ramadan. Recently, during the cruises of the University Research Vessel Conch off the Kerala Coast (1958-1963) two species of deep water prawns and one species of lobster were collected from depths 100 - 180 fathoms. Of these, Penaeopsis philippi is found in large numbers occupying an almost continuous bed extending from Anjengo to Mangalore, while P. rectacutus has a restricted appearance between Cochin and Calicut. However, some sort of year to year variation has also been observed regarding the abundance of the species at various stations. Peurulus sewelli has a more restricted distribution, the maximum number being found between Puvar and Cochin. Attempt has been made to correlate the occurrence of the species with the hydrological conditions at the bottom and the nature of the substratum. It is observed that Peurulus sewelli occupies a more or less hard bed formed of sand with shell fragments or stones and small percentage of silt, the bottom temperature at the stations varying from 11°C to l4°C. P. sewelli is a more or less permanent inhabitant of the edge of the continental shell off the Kerala Coast worthy of attention for detailed investigation with a view to explore the possibilities of commercial exploitation.

On the effect of tickler chain on the catches landed by a 55 ft. trawl net

The communication deals with the results of comparative tests conducted from Cochin base to study the effect of a tickler chain on the catches landed by a 55' shrimp otter trawl. The net was operated with and without chain and 82 hauls of 61 hours and 28 minutes total duration were made. The following are the conclusions: (a) the catch of shrimp per hour of trawling is increased by about 71% due to attachment of the chain to the ground rope; (b) the attachment of the tickler chain also increased the catch of fish by 25%. The increase in the catch of shrimps and fish is probably due to the disturbance caused by moving chain attached to the foot-rope.

The Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Ernakulam

In appreciation of the pressing need for coordinated research in various aspects of fishery technology and for the overall development of fisheries industries in India, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture had decided to set up the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology. The Institute was established in 1957 at Cochin (Ernakulam). The research work at the Institute including its sub-stations and units is carried out in two wings: Craft and Gear Wing and Processing Wing. The third unit, the Extension Information and Statistics Wing, renders a service by functioning as a liaison between the research laboratories and the industry.

A survey of the microbiological quality of commercial frozen prawn products

The paper presents the results of a bacteriological survey carried out on 2,917 samples of frozen prawn, 55 samples of raw material, 35 samples of water, 4 samples of ice and 42 samples of various equipment used for processing. The survey covered a period of three years (1960-63) and comprised of samples collected from five of the leading processing factories in Cochin. Frozen products tested consisted of headless (marine and fresh water), peeled and deveined and cooked frozen samples. Statistical analysis of the data shows that there is no significant variation between samples and between factories with respect to product quality. The standard plate count varied between 1.0x10(4 superscript) and 1.0x10(6 superscript) per gram for headless and between 1.0x10(4 superscript) and 1.0x10(7 superscript) for peeled and deveined and cooked frozen samples. Majority of the samples had bacterial load well within the limits prescribed for such products.

On the selective action of the cod end meshes of a shrimp trawl

Selectivity studies using cod end and cover to determine the optimum cod end mesh size for commercial size groups of shrimps was carried out at Cochin during 1963-64 fishing season. The normality of the result was checked by trouser cod end method. Although the present investigation was mainly aimed to find out suitable cod end mesh size for commercial varieties of shrimps, five commonly occurring species of fishes were also taken. The 50% escape level, co-efficient of selectivity and selection factor for all the species were worked out. From the findings, the authors stress the necessity of increasing the cod end mesh size from the present condition (25.4 to 31.70 mm) to 41.65 mm fabricated mesh size to avoid depletion of the natural population.

Hydrographic winch

A winch suitable for lowering and hauling up of costly hydrographic apparatus like Bathy-thermograph, Reversible thermometers, Current flow meters etc., was designed, fabricated and tested at Off Shore Fishing Station, Cochin. The first model of this winch is in use on board the motor vessel Pratap, a Tuna Long linger.