Chemical composition of Bombay ducks (Harpodon nehereus) and changes occurring in the nutritive value of dried Bombay ducks on storage

Fresh Bombay ducks and Bombay ducks dried (a) without any pre-treatment or (b) after brining with NaCl solutions of 15% and 7.5% concentrations for 18 hours were analyzed for moisture, ash, minerals, vitamins, fat, free fatty acids, peroxide value, thiobarbituric acid value, total protein, total amino nitrogen, soluble proteins and trimethylamine contents. All the dried samples were stored in (a) tightly closed tin containers or (b) polythene bags and analyzed for the above mentioned constituents every 1½ months. It was observed that brining did not exercise any marked influence on keeping properties. Organoleptic observations showed that fish stored in tin containers kept better and longer than those stored in polythene bags.

Suitability of rich-fish culture under mono and polyculture systems in the boro rice ecosystem

An experiment was conducted in farmers’ fields under Paikgacha thana, Khulna to study the suitability of integrated rice-cum-fish culture. Three treatments namely T1 (Puntius gonionotus), T2 (Puntius gonionotus and Cyprinus carpio) and T3 ( Cyprinus carpio) were included for the study each having three replicates. The fish were stocked at a density of 3750/ha in all the rice plots. The physicochemical parameters of water viz., water depth, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, salinity, nitrate and phosphate etc. recorded during the study period were found within optimum range. Of the two cultured species C. carpio attained the highest average individual weight (160g) and survival (81.06%). With respect to biomass and income, highest average fish production and net profit per hectare (306.74kg and Tk. 8177.91) were obtained in T2 and the lowest (184.17kg and Tk. 2049.41) obtained in T1 and a significant variation (p<0.05) in fish production was observed among the treatments while for rice production, it was insignificant. The cost benefit ratio of fish production found were 1:1.29, 1:2.14 and 1:1.90 for T1, T2 and T3, respectively.

On continued culture trials of Lates calcarifer (Bloch) and Oreochromis mossambicus in the ponds of Kharland Research Station, Panvel, Maharashtra

Pond culture trials of Lates calcarifer (Bloch) were initiated in the ponds of Kharland Research Station, Panvel, from 1985 up to 1989 by adopting varying methods of inputs of commonly available organic substances comprising de-oiled cake of groundnut, rice bran and raw cattle dung. Although provision of zooplankton generated under phased fertilisation technique resulted in considerable yield level, subsequent trials in combination with direct feed methods gave higher yield. Trials during 1990-91 adopting similar feed input techniques were continued but by stocking the seed of both Lates and Oreochromis mossambicus with yield percentage around 72.23 for Lates and 27.73 for Oreochromis. Trials were further continued during next three years. In relation to the organic input levels the yields rate for seven months period was in the range of 119.4 kg/ha to 250.4 kg/ha for Lates. In case of Oreochromis the yield rate varied between 28.5 to 153.32 kg/ha indicating the influence of differential stocking rates and size of the seed of two species.

The use of syntax and multiple alternatives in the VODIS voice operated database inquiry system

The paper describes the architecture of VODIS, a voice operated database inquiry system, and presents some experiments which investigate the effects on performance of varying the level of a priori syntactic constraints. The VODIS system includes a novel mechanism for incorporating context-free grammatical constraints directly into the word recognition algorithm. This allows the degree of a priori constraint to be smoothly varied and provides for the controlled generation of multiple alternatives. The results show that when the spoken input deviates from the predefined task grammar, a combination of weak a priori syntax rules in conjunction with full a posteriori parsing on a lattice of alternative word matches provides the most robust recognition performance. © 1991.

Apparent abundance of yellowfin and bigeye tuna in the inshore, off shore and near oceanic ranges around Ceylon

Sri Lanka entered oceanic longline fishery in 1967 and have limited the areas of operation to the central equatorial belt, thus limiting their fishery to the yellowfin and bigeye tunas. Sri Lanka while developing her coastal fishery took a leap into oceanic longlining and in view of her programme for accelerated development of the fishing industry, has to fill the gap between the two fisheries by exploiting the intermediate range (off shore and near oceanic) which would chiefly be for tunas and sharks. The present paper has been prepared in this context, utilizing available data and information on the tuna longline fishery in the inshore (approximately 6-15 miles), off shore (approximately 15-100 miles) and near oceanic (approximately 100-300 miles) ranges (Fig, 1).

Ceylon's tuna longline fishing effort and catch distribution in the Indian Ocean, 1967-70

The present report was prepared to evaluate the performance of two fishing vessels, study trends in fishing condition, the status of the stocks exploited and also to contribute basic information required by the Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission for management of the tuna resources.

Results of the Austrian-Ceylonese hydrobiological mission 1970 of the 1st Zoological Institute of the University of Vienna (Austria) and the Department of Zoology of the Vidyalankara University of Ceylon, Kelaniya. Pt. 4. List of reptilia and amphibia collected in the mountains of south-west Ceylon, with notes on finding localities

Sri Lanka is a comparatively small island (65.584 km²) within the equatorial belt of calms. There are only slight seasonal variations in temperature, air humidity and day length. A description is given of the amphibian and reptile material brought back from the Austrian Indo-Pacific expedition, 1970-71. Some notes on the habitat of the animals are included.

Asserting rights, defining responsibilities: perspectives from small-scale fishing communities on coastal and fisheries management in the Philippines

In preparation for the Workshop and Symposium on “Asserting Rights, Defining Responsibilities: Perspectives from Small-scale Fishing Communities on Coastal and Fisheries Management in Asia”, held in Siem Reap Cambodia, from 3 to 8 May 2007, case studies were undertaken in six countries in Asia—Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand. Among other things, the studies aimed to document and explore the understanding that fishing communities have about their rights to fisheries and coastal resources, as well as the obligations and responsibilities associated with these rights, and to document and discuss their initiatives to assert these rights and fulfill their responsibilities. The studies formed the basis for discussions at the Workshop and Symposium. This case study from the Philippines will be found useful by NGOs, regional and national organizations of artisanal fishworkers, and anyone interested in fisheries and fishing communities in the Philippines.