Is Lapu Lapu the new endangered fish?

Is Lapu Lapu the new endangered fish?

By Henrylito D. Tacio

 

Unless something is done soon, the succulent lapu-lapu (grouper)will soon no longer be part of the menu in your favorite Chinese restaurant. The reason: the supply is facing imminent collapse!

Forty years of unregulated cyanide and dynamite fishing, in addition to the rising trend to target vulnerable spawning areas of lapu-lapu  (grouper), have all contributed to the rapid disappearance of the highly valued fish.

Most of the spawning areas of lapulapu  (grouper) can be found in Palawan, the country’s last frontier. Palawan and its territorial waters host some of the most productive yet exploited fisheries on earth, according to World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), a global conservation group. Continue reading “Is Lapu Lapu the new endangered fish?”