Tag: lobster

Maintaining the pen and managing stock

Stocking Density

Select stocks that weigh at least 200-300 g each. Lobsters are carnivorous, thus, select fingerlings of the same size. Stock the pen during high tide by gently dropping the fingerlings into the water. Do not mix healthy juveniles with those that are molting or have just molted. The following stocking densities are recommended for the different compartments:

-rearing area – 150 pieces;

-nursery area- 160 pieces; and

-transition are – 150 pieces

 

Sanitation and protection.  One month after constructing the pen, remove any fouling organisms, crabs or flotsam which can damage the net.  Clean then et at least twice a month. Using coconut husk or nylon  scrub, remove barnacles and other debris to allow water movement inside the pen. Install kerosene-fuelled lamps along the perimeter to warm fisher folks of the presence of the enclosure, especially at night.

 

Shelter for the stock

Arrange old tires, bamboo tubes or rock piles inside the pen to provide shelter for the lobsters. Use coconut fronds to filter out too much sunlight.

 

Feeding the stock

Feed the stock twice a day (early morning and late afternoon) at 15-20 % of the aggregate body weight of the stock. Some fisher folks from coastal communities in Guimaras (la Paz, Sabang and Pandaraonan0 have been using sea urchins, trash fish like rays and sharks and other animal-based feed with good results. Monitor the growth of the lobsters at least twice a month to determine feed requirement and for record purposes.

 

Monitoring

Keep a record of activities and financial concerns to determine the status of the project/

 

Harvesting

Harvest the lobster six months after the first stocking. Oversized lobster weighing 1.5-2 kg are rarely bought. Harvest those that weigh at least 1 kg each. Do not harvest lobster that have just molted because they cannot withstand stress during  transport. Survival is high at 90 percent for lobsters that weigh at least 250 g. harvesting can be done as early as four months and as late as seven months. Always keep a weighing scale to determine the weight  of the lobsters.  Succeeding harvest can be done every month thereafter. The ideal time for harvesting is between 6:00 am to 8:00 am, or when the weather is particularly cloudy. Do not harvest when it rains because lobsters die when exposed to freshwater.

Buyer prefer live lobsters; therefore lobsters must be handled with utmost care. Wear a pair of  goggles or snorkel while harvesting by hand or harvest using a scoop net. Always use a box (at least 2 cubic ft) made of plastic weave or netting partially buoyed by bamboo tubes. Styrofoam or any other floater to keep t the harvested lobster in the water while the collection is on going.

 

Marketing

Contact buyers before harvesting. Deliver the live harvest immediately to avoid stress. Wrap the lobsters in paper cloth pre-soaked in seawater and place them inside Styrofoam boxes.

 

Sustainability

A lobster pen operator must source for lobster juveniles and feeds to sustain this livelihood activity.

Constructing the pen

Layout- using bamboo poles or stakes, mark the corners of an area measuring 5 m x 5m. Drive the main post into these points.

 

Staking – Bamboo, ipl-ipil and bakawan are good staking materials.

-Sharpen the ends of the stakes and drive those 2-3 ft deep into the laid out area.

-Leave enough length to attach the net and 1-2 ft gap between stakes.

-Strengthen the hold of the stakes by attaching onto them a pole or piece of wood horizontal to the base at a height of 2-3 ft.

– Repeat the process every 2-3 ft above the last level depending on the desired height of the pen and the point for strengthening the whole structure.

 

Installing the screen.  Inside the pen, dig a 1 ft deep canal around the perimeter to bury the bottom part of the net and prevent burrowing a species from escaping. At least, two persons are needed to install the screen,  one inside the pen and the other outside it. From the inside, secure the net onto the wall framework with bamboo strips tied vertically onto the horizontal bars with nylon twine (80 lbs)

 

Dividing the pen into compartments.  Divide the pen into three compartments:

-rearing area (15 sq m.)

-transition area (6 sq. m)

-nursery area (4 sq. m)

Follow the process for the layout, staking and installing the screen mentioned earlier. Use nets of larger mesh or bamboo strips to secure an additional compartment of at least 2 m for the molting stock.

 

Constructing the caretaker’s shed . in one corner of the site, construct a shed for the caretaker and fro the harvested stock before the latter is transported to the market. Use local roofing material such as nipa or cogon.

 

Continue reading “Lobster production- part 2”

Lobster Culture

By; the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources

 

Lobster (Family Homaridae) commands a higher price than other crustacean species such as shrimps and crabs. The common spiny lobsters are in demand both in the local and export market because of their delicate flesh. They are bought live and each weighs between 500 g – 1kg.

 

The spiny lobster has a hard shell, stalked eyes, four pairs of legs and a pair of antennae below the eyes. Unlike the common species, spiny lobsters do not have large claws. However, they have a pair of hand like appendages used to hold food. In guimaras, Philippines, the most common species are the ornate tropical rock lobster or tiger lobster (Panuliris ornatus); green lobster (Jasus verreauxi) and the Southern rock lobster or pulahan (Jasus novaehollandiae).

 

Fisher folks gather lobster from reefs at shallow  depths at nigh using kerosene-fueled lamps (lampara) and pole nets or gill nets. During the day, lobsters are speared or caught by air compressors. Fisher folks from Guimaras harvest tropical rock lobsters from wild stock. During the peak season, they could harvest about 50-80 kg per week valued at 800.00 pesos per kg. Lobsters are successfully cultured in Zamboanga and Guimaras, Philippines.

 

Lobster culture in Pens

Lobster culture has been done in cages, concrete ponds and sea farm pens in Singapore, Thailand, Australia and recently, in the southern Philippines. The most conventional design is the cubical pen measuring at least 5 m x 5 m x 4-6 m framed by wood or bamboo and strengthened at the corners by big poles.

Continue reading “Lobster production- part 1”