|
Australian partners: CSIRO Marine Research
Vietnamese Partners: Institute of Oceanography, RIA3 and University of Fisheries
Duration: 2005-2008
Funding Agency: The Australian Centre for International Argriculture Research (ACIAR)
Purpose:
To maintain the livelihoods of coastal communities involved in the new lobster farming industry in central Viet Nam.
Objectives
- To identify the population of the spiny lobster supplying the larvae that are caught and grown-out by lobster farmers in central Vietnam.
- To evaluate any threats to the source population of lobsters that would reduce the supply of larvae.
- To recommend policies, including international agreements if necessary, to safeguard sufficient spawning adults in the source population to ensure a regular supply of juveniles for grow-out by lobster farmers in central Viet Nam.
Expected Outputs
1.1 Maps showing: i) the most likely location of spawning adult lobsters and, ii) settlement areas for the lobster seed produced by these adults at the end of the larval dispersal phase. If the population genetics study identifies more than one self-replenishing population, separate maps will be produced for each population.
1.2 Assessments of the number of spawning adults in the lobster population supplying seed to Viet Nam, and the vulnerability of these adults to over-exploitation.
1.3 Policies, including international agreements if necessary, to protect sufficient spawning lobsters from the source population to ensure a regular supply of seed for grow-out by lobster farmers in central Viet Nam.
Activities
1.1 Modeling the most likely location of spawning adult lobsters by integrating information on peak settlement time for lobster seed in central Vietnam, larval duration, spawning season, vertical migration behaviour of the developing larvae in the water column, and oceanographic information on the velocity and direction of various layers of the water column for the two geotrophic eddies in the South China Sea.
1.2 A population genetics study of the ornate spiny lobster,in three stages. First, development of specific genetic markers for Panulirus ornatus. Second, assessment of genetic variability of the species throughout its distribution as a guide to identifying the best tools for an in-depth analysis of samples from the South China Sea. Third, analysis of a comprehensive set of samples from the South China Sea to identify the number and extent of self-replenishing populations of Panulirus ornatus in the region as the basis for sustainable management.
1.3 Analysis of topographic surveys of the seafloor of the South China Sea to identify possible natural sanctuaries for adult Panulirus ornatus on reefs that are too deep to fish, and to determine whether any such sites coincide with likely spawning areas revealed by the oceanographic modeling.
1.4 Assessments of the number of adults at the identified spawning area to determine the potential for self-replenishment of the population. This may involve tagging studies to determine whether adults undergo migrations which may make them vulnerable to over-exploitation at other locations at other times of the year. (Panulirus ornatus undergoes such migrations between Torres Strait and Papua New Guinea).
1.5 Review of legislation for fishing of adult lobsters in the nation(s) of southeast Asia where the spawning adults occur to assess the current instruments available to protect the necessary number of spawners.
1.6 Integration of results from 1.1-1.5 above to recommend management practices for all phases of the life cycle of spiny lobsters for each self-replenishing population of Panulirus ornatus in southeast Asia. The aim here will be to balance high production from the resource through capture and culture of lobster seed in Viet Nam with the interests of any fishers currently harvesting the spawning adults.
|