Progress 04/21/08 to 04/20/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Developing an innovative land-based holding system for the sandfish (Holothuria scabra) broodstock and juveniles was necessary to conduct hatchery propagation work in a repeated manner. This is because that there was few land space available near-shore in Pohnpei for both broodstock and juveniles in captivity and that there were complicated land ownership issues to be resolved in the mangrove shore areas before placing the animals. Technology transfer of a hatchery-based sea cucumber, the sandfish in particular, has been a major concern to the Micronesians by advancing towards developing sustainable economic models in Pohnpei and other U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands. Increasing local knowledge on this high-valued species is also a key element for developing ecologically sustainable coastal fisheries activity. This project aimed that hatchery-based sandfish aquaculture could lead local communities and businesses to restart this once prosperous industry in a sustainable manner. This research project could show a way to produce juveniles from hatchery and to grow them out to the restocking sizes. PARTICIPANTS: Mr. Justino Smith (aquaculture extension agent) of College of Micronesia-FSM Cooperative Extension Service in Pohnpei; Mr. Martin Hagilmai (maintenance technician), Mr. Belenko Halverson (aquaculture extension aide) and Mr. Clayton Maluwelgiye (aquaculture extension aide) College of Micronesia Land Grant Program in Pohnpei. These four participated to this project in all areas of activities including stock survey, spawning induction, larval rearing and juvenile grow-out. Three Micronesian graduates from Marine Science of COM-FSM participate to the hatchery-related work on the sandfish from the year 3. Pohnpei State Division of Aquaculture and Fisheries also participated to the wild stock survey and broodstock search in Pohnpei lagoon during this project. During the year 1, Dr. Manoj Nair and his research assistant of College of Marshall Islands and Mr. Steven Young-Uhk (aquaculture extension agent) of COM-FSM in Yap participated to the sea cucumber stock survey work in Majuro and Pohnpei. Pweniou Island community in the southeastern Pohnpei lagoon joined in the year 3 for the wilds tock survey and restocking site development as well as installation of experimental ocean cages for monitoring tagged sandfish. TARGET AUDIENCES: Mangrove covered coastal communities of Nett and Kitti Municipalities in Pohnpei with approximately one-third of the island population of 50,000, who have been under-privileged without a stable income source from the coastal fisheries activities, were primary target to inspire sustainable aquaculture activity. Personnel of the Pohnpei State Government departments were also targeted, such as Division of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Economic Development Authority and Environmental Protection Authority, who regulates commercial harvesting and processing of the sea cucumbers in Pohnpei. College of Micronesia researchers and students were also target audiences by involving interns and offering special classroom lectures by this project. A couple of hundred audiences were targeted during the international conferences and workshops for applying the project's innovative Habitat Simulator culture system and hatchery juvenile production methods. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: As described in the previous report for departure of Dr. Manoj Nair (Co-PI) from CMI Land Grant Program, the PI modified and reprogrammed to focus on the Pohnpei segment of work and from general sea cucumber species to a single most important species Holothuria scabra in Pohnpei. The modifications were made as follows: (Objective 1) to study abundance and distribution of the holothurian sea cucumbers, H. scabra in particular, in the Pohnpei Lagoon; (Objective 2) to assess availability of commercially high-valued broodstock of H. scabra by studying broodstock conditioning and spawning induction for hatchery propagation; and (Objective 3) to monitor and describe larval development and juvenile grow-out.

Impacts
(Objective 1): The sandfish were found to distribute widely along the mangrove shores from 27 survey sites in the six sections. The habitat was limited to a tidal flat area near mangrove shore, which was characterized by very soft sandy or muddy substrate in the seagrass bed area. Harder substrates such as coral stones and rocks toward the edge of tidal flat zone formed natural barriers for retaining the wild stock. They buried in the muddy bottom during the daytime and were found twice as many at night. Average CPUE (catch per unit effort) was 3.9 sandfish per staff-hour in Pohnpei. The highest CPUE was Madorenhwm (SE Pohnpei lagoon) with 14.4, followed by Sokehs (NW Pohnpei) with 4.8, Nett (NE Pohnpei) with 3.2 and Kitti (S-SE Pohnpei) with 2.5. The distribution pattern was patchy and some sites did not show any resource, which would help implementing sites selection for restocking programs. (Objective 2): Approximately 200 sandfish spawners have been kept for almost three years in the raceway system without a tank change. Habitat Simulator was developed for this project by adopting a combination of closed re-circulating seawater and a partial flow-through method in the raceways. This enabled the project to conduct 12 hatchery runs. The Habitat Simulator was capable of growing both marine plants and animals such as the seagrass and sandfish in the wild. The average stocking density in the Habitat Simulator was approximately 20 individuals or 3,000 grams per square meter, which is the highest of all available information with prevailing stocking density at 0.1 individuals or 20 g per square meter in sea-pens or earthen ponds. (Objective 3): This project developed its own larval rearing protocol. Three microalgae species (Cheatoceros mulleri, Rhodomonas maculata and Pavlova lutheri) were used with total daily algal density being maintained between 5,000 to 40,000 cells per milliliter. The following developmental stages were found: Gastrula (day1), early Auricularia (days 1-3), mid Auricularia (days 3-6), late Auricularia (days 6-10), Doliolaria and Pentactula (days10-12), Pentactula and Juvenile (days 12-15) and Juvenile (day 15 onward). On days 8-10, the larvae were transferred to the raceways for settlement containing pre-grown naturally occurring epiphytes and homogenized seagrass (500 g per week per 1000 L water volume). On days 25-30, settled juveniles were further transferred to the Habitat Simulator for a long term grow-out. The juveniles grew to 2.7 g mean wet weight at 6 months and doubling to 5.5 g at 12 months. They grew to 46.4.0 g (mean weight) and 93.4 mm (mean length) at 1.5 years. In February 2011 approximately 10,000 juveniles produced on day 28 after spawning. Preliminary tagging trials were also conducted and T-bar anchor tags showed promising results both for broodstock and juveniles, in which the retention rates for the broodstock were between 81.7 % - 90.0 % and those for the juveniles were 80 % at two weeks after tagging. The smallest juvenile specimens were around 30 g wet weight or 70 mm long, of which the tag was implanted to the postero-dorsal part near anal opening based.

Publications

• Ito, M. and M. Hasurmai. 2011. Sea Cucumber Aquaculture Status in the Federated States of Micronesia. Asia-Pacific Tropical Sea Cucumber Symposium. 14-17 February 2011. Noumea, New Caledonia.

Progress 01/01/10 to 12/31/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: The project's primary target is to locate the sandfish broodstock and to keep them either in the land-based or ocean-based system adjacent to the hatchery, so that hatchery operations can be repeated and the juvenile grow-out work can also be conducted to gain experiences particularly by the Micronesian technicians. As described in the previous report, a local knowledge on the wild stock of high-valued species particularly the sandfish (Holothuria scabra) helps assessing resource survey and potential restocking sites where the natural resource was depleted. A long term hatchery and juvenile grow-out work becomes feasible if a low-cost maintenance land-based tank system is developed. The project's aim is not only transferring such technology and training Micronesian technicians but also proceeding into restocking work for resource enhancement and revitalize sea cucumber aquaculture industry. PARTICIPANTS: Pweniou Island community in the southeastern Pohnpei lagoon participated to the wilds tock survey and restocking site development as well as installation of experimental ocean cages for monitoring tagged sandfish. Three Micronesian youths graduated from College of Micronesia-FSM joined aquaculture training and continued to participate to the hatchery-related work on the sandfish. Mr. Justino Smith, agriculture extension agent of the College of Micronesia-FSM Cooperative Extension Service in Pohnpei continued to participate to this project in all areas of activities including stock survey, spawning induction, larval rearing and juvenile grow-out. Three technicians of the College of Micronesia Land Grant Program continued to undertake hatchery work as well as field survey activities. They also assisted data recording of the spawning events, larval rearing and juvenile grow-out work. TARGET AUDIENCES: Local people of various communities in Pohnpei are a primary target, who have been under-privileged without a stable income source from the coastal areas, local municipal offices and the Pohnpei State Government departments such as Marine Resources, Economic Development Authority and Environmental Protection Authority, which once regulated commercial harvesting and processing of the sea cucumbers in Pohnpei Lagoon, the College of Micronesia researchers and students, and the overseas sea cucumber researchers and international agencies. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: As described in the previous report for departure of Dr. Manoj Nair, a Co-PI from the College of Marshall Islands Land Grant Program, the PI continued to focus on the Pohnpei segment of work based on the re-programmed project: (Objective 1) To study abundance and distribution of the holothurian sea cucumbers, H. scabra in particular, in the Pohnpei Lagoon; (Objective 2) To assess availability of commercially high-valued broodstock of H. scabra by studying broodstock conditioning and spawning induction for hatchery propagation; and (Objective 3) To monitor and describe larval development and juvenile grow-out.

Impacts
(Objective 1 - To study abundance and distribution): So far, 591sandfish were found in the wild, in which 144 were taken and transferred to keep for the broodstock conditioning work. A total of 27 sites were survey in the Pohnpei lagoon divided by six sections by deploying a total number of 180 staffs and 24.8 hours. Overall average CPUE (catch per unit effort) was 3.9, the highest CPUE was from Madorenhwm area (southeast Pohnpei lagoon) with 14.4 sandfish per staff-hour, followed by Sokehs (northwest Pohnpei) with 4.8, Nett (the northeast Pohnpei) with 3.2 and Kitti (south Pohnpei) with 2.5. However, the distribution was patchy and some sites did not show any resource. (Objective 2 - To assess availability of the sandfish by studying broodstock conditioning and spawning induction for hatchery propagation): Between 50 to 80 each broodstock were kept in 2,500 liter raceway tanks. Without a mortality over the project period, this broodstock holding system proved to be innovative by a combination of closed recirculation and partial flow-through methods with sub-sand filter system, simulating wild habitat of the sandfish. Average stocking density in these tanks were approximately 3,000 g per square meter or 20 individuals, which were higher than conventional sea-pen method of up to 20g or 0.1 animal per square meter. (Objective 3 - To monitor and describe larval development and juvenile grow-out): Hatchery-produced juveniles were kept in two 2,500 liter raceway tanks which were similar system to the broodstock tank. The major food source was any debris from recycling system within the tank and feeding effort reduced to minimum by occasional adding of muddy sand and the decaying sea grass leaves. The first group juvenile grew to double their mean weight from 2.7 g (6 months) to 5.5 g (12 monthd) after spawning. The second group did not show significant growth in mean weight from 5.8 g (5 months) to 3.1 g (10 months) although the largest juvenile reached to 45 g. These suggested that this raceway system could be adequate for the first six months without significant feeding strategy, but it required additional feed materials such as artificial diet, fish trash or other forms of foods in order to fatten or grow the juveniles faster. Although marking or tagging will form a part of subsequent restocking research project, if the project proposal is made and funding is approved, a preliminary tagging trial was conducted to understand the tagging method and to estimate timing of tagging juveniles. Despite the fact that a conventional method using T-bar anchor tag was reported to be inadequate with a very low retention rate of the T-bar tags, the preliminary trial showed promising because the T- bar tags retained well after their burrowing behavior. It depends on how well the technicians acquire tagging techniques and on where to implant such T-bar tags after practicing techniques with some specimens being dissected and sacrificed. The smallest juvenile specimens which implanted T-bar tag were around 30 g weight or 70 mm long.

Publications

• Ito, M. 2010. Status of wild stock and hatchery production of the sandfish Holothuria scabra in Pohnpei, the Federated States of Micronesia. Abstract PNI 521, Australasian Aquaculture 2010, 23-26 May, Hobart, Australia.
• Ito, M., M. Hagilmai, B, Halverson, C. Maluwelgiye and J. Smith. 2010. A hatchery-based aquaculture of the sea cucumber Holothuria scabra in the Federated States of Micronesia. Abstract, Tahiti Aquaculture 2010, 1-11, December 2010, Tahiti, French Polynesia

Progress 01/01/09 to 12/31/09

Outputs
OUTPUTS: A primary target was to secure sufficient number of broodstock, at least 50 individuals of each sex for spawning and larval runs. A local knowledge on the broodstock collection was one of the key to success in finding high-valued species such as the sandfish (Holothuria scabra) as described in the previous progress report. In addition to the wild stock survey, a land-based broodstock holding tank system was another key factor to a long term hatchery work so that the system should be something new, unlike those system designs having been adopted by other sea cucumber researchers or research projects elsewhere. During this reporting period, the project was also expected to conduct several spawning induction and larval rearing work, which aimed to achieve immediate technology transfer of existing hatchery methods into our own hatchery program. However, the hatchery and subsequent juvenile grow-out techniques needed to modify to suit for the project logistics and feeding strategy during each phase of larval and juvenile development. The hatchery produced juveniles were also kept cultured in the newly developed grow-out system for a long term monitoring and for subsequent restocking programs. PARTICIPANTS: Mr. Justino Smith, agriculture extension agent of the College of Micronesia-FSM Cooperative Extension Service in Pohnpei, continued to participate to this project in all areas of activities including stock survey, spawning induction, larval rearing and juvenile grow-out. The officers from the Pohnpei State Government Division of Fisheries and Aquaculture also participated to the wild stock survey in Pohnpei Lagoon. Four local youths from Nett community continued to participate to the sandfish broodstock collections and wild stock survey as well as assisted juvenile grow-out work at the hatchery. Three technicians of the College of Micronesia Land Grant Program continued to undertake hatchery work as well as field survey activities. They also assisted data recording of the spawning events, larval rearing and juvenile grow-out work. TARGET AUDIENCES: Local people of various communities in Pohnpei are a primary target, who have been under-privileged without a stable income source from the coastal areas, local municipal offices and the Pohnpei State Government departments such as Marine Resources, Economic Development Authority and Environmental Protection Authority, which once regulated commercial harvesting and processing of the sea cucumbers in Pohnpei Lagoon, the College of Micronesia researchers and students, and the overseas sea cucumber researchers and international agencies. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Dr. Manoj Nair, a Co-PI of this project from the College of Marshall Islands Land Grant Program, has exited from this project because he took up his new job at the university in the US mainland during the mid 2009. He was supposed to conduct physiology and biology of the Holothurian sea cucumbers such as the sandfish for spawning seasonality, gonad development and larval development in particular. Therefore, the PI had to omit all of the research topics of Co-PI by modifying the collaborative work areas into focusing only on the Pohnpei segment of work and the project planning, activities and budget were modified accordingly. The objectives have also been modified as following: (Objective 1) To study abundance and distribution of the holothurian sea cucumbers, H. scabra in particular, in the Pohnpei Lagoon; (Objective 2) To assess availability of commercially high-valued broodstock of H. scabra by studying broodstock conditioning and spawning induction for hatchery propagation; and (Objective 3) To monitor and describe larval development and juvenile grow-out. As the project Year 1 survey revealed unexpectedly higher abundance of the sandfish (H. scabra) wild stock in the vicinity of the hatchery, the project has been focusing to work on the sandfish.

Impacts
(Objective 1): 431 sandfish were found in the wild, in which 253 were collected from the vicinity of Nett Point Hatchery. Both Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE = number of sandfish found per staff-hour from random search) and the Line Transact (LT = number of sandfish per hectare from duplicated 2 m by 50 m transact) indicated significantly high density of the sandfish: 400 individuals per ha. (10,000 square meters) at Sokehs Harbor and Dekehtihk (Airport Island), 122.2 at Nett Point, 40 at Parem and zero at Lenger. Overall results on relative abundances by the daytime random search showed the highest number of the sandfish at Madolenihmw (CPUE 28.8) in the Southeast area of Pohnpei lagoon, followed by Sokehs (14.0), Nett Point (2.2), Parem (1.3), Dekehtihk (1.1) and Lenger (0) in the Northern Pohnpei Lagoon. The nocturnal behavior was also confirmed from the projectfs broodstock holding tanks with the sub-sand filter system as well as the hatchery-produced juveniles. The broodstock search and collection revealed a unique pattern of abundances between daytime and night-time at Nett Point, which showed higher abundances, twice as many sandfish found at night (4.3 sandfish/staff-hr.) compared to the daytime survey (2.2) by the CPUE (Catch Per Unit Effort) method. LT method also showed similar pattern, 122.2 sandfish at daytime and 88.9 at night in the vicinity of the hatchery. Both CPUE and LT results gave surprisingly higher figures compared to those reported in the past wild stock studies by others in Pohnpei lagoon. It was highly likely that the abundances had been underestimated or erroneously estimated. (Objective 2): 100 each broodstock have been kept in two 2,500 liter raceway tanks for spawning and hatchery propagation purposes. As of this reporting date, no mortality has been recorded in these tanks. The broodstock holding system adopted a combination of closed recirculation and partial flow-through methods with sub-sand filter system. For feeding purposes, the seaweed (Graciralia and Sargassum spp.) and other sea grasses (eel-grass) were collected from the vicinity of the hatchery and they were shredded and ground, and then they were sprayed in the tanks once a week. A stocking density of the sandfish was kept at 20 – 30 individuals per square meter, ten fold higher than that of a simple bottom tanks or earthen pond system. (Objective 3): Spawning induction and larval and juvenile rearing work continued throughout 2009. So far, 9 larval rearing attempts have been conducted after 19 spawning induction events. A couple of thousand juveniles of the 6 months old (mean = 5.8 g, s.d.= 8.0 g, n = 368) from the 8th larval run have also been kept in three 2,500 liter raceway tanks. Hatchery juvenile production from this project revealed a wide range of color morphs in the sandfish, which has apparently made confusions among many field survey personnel elsewhere. By monitoring for a long term in the tanks, it could also help revising or improving the sea cucumber species identifications on site.

Publications

• Ito, M. 2009. Resource enhancement project of the sandfish Holothuria scabra in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. Abstract for Oral Presentation, Asian Pacific Aquaculture Conference 2009, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Progress 01/01/08 to 12/31/08

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Materials and supplies were ordered overseas including microalgae for feeding the sea cucumber larvae. Along with the ordering process, the indoor larval rearing facility at the Nett Point hatchery in Pohnpei began its modification for the sea cucumber spawning-run and the undercover area of the hatchery was also added for installing tanks, water supply and aeration system for broodstock holding juvenile grow-out and mass culturing of microalgae. Preliminary wild stock survey to locate high-value species, such as the black teatfish (Holothuria whitmaei) and the sandfish (H. scabra), was conducted at Pakin Atoll in May and June and at surrounding reef-flat and tidal flat areas of the Nett Point hatchery in September. Pre-operation workshop was conducted for three days in September in collaboration with the Pohnpei State Marine Development (PNIMD), College of the Marshall Islands Land Grant Program (CMI-LGP), COM-FSM Cooperative Extension Service in Yap (COM-Yap) and the Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture (CTSA). The workshop aimed to provide all participants with a wide range of information about the sea cucumber aquaculture; present status and future prospect of industry, biology, taxonomy, hatchery and grow-out methods, resource survey methods, restocking and resource management policy issues. Field training was also conducted at Nett district for the project staffs on the species identifications and broodstock collection and handling. The extension work began after the workshop to gather information from the elders in the local communities for high-value sea cucumber species. Broodstock survey and collection for the hatchery work was scheduled to commence from November 2008, which aims to secure approximately 100 animals as spawners. Wild stock survey commences from February 2009 at bi-monthly intervals at various sites within the lagoon of Pohnpei. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Manoji Nair, Aquaculture Researcher, College of Marshall Islands Land Grant Program, who participated to the sea cucumber workshop in Pohnpei in September 2008. Mr. Steven Young Uhk, Aquaculture Extension Agent, College of Micronesia-FSM Yap Campus, who participated to the sea cucumber workshop and a preliminary wild stock survey in Pohnpei in September 2008. Dr. Cheng Sheng Lee, Executive Director, Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture, Hawaii, who attended the sea cucumber workshop in Pohnpei in September 2008. Mr. Donald David, Chief of Marine Development, Pohnpei State Government, who participated to the sea cucumber workshop in Pohnpei in September 2008. Mr. Justino Smith, Agriculture Extension Agent, College of Micronesia-FSM Cooperative Extension Service Pohnpei, who particpated to the sea cucumber workshop and a preliminary wild stock survey in Pohnpei in September 2008. Mr. Ben Ponia, Aquaculture Adviser, The Secretariat of Pacific Community, New Caledonia, who provided the sea cucumber identification crads and the hatchery manual as well as collaborating by contacting various sea cucumber experts for this project. On-the-job training of the sea cucumber hatchery system setting, maintenance and microalgae culture methods as well as broodstock holding system set-up and the sea cucumber identification tools were provided to the aquaculture project technicians and extension aides of the College of Micronesia Land Grant Program. TARGET AUDIENCES: Local people in various communities in Pohnpei are a primary target, who have been under-privileged without a stable income source from the coastal areas, local municipal offices and the state government agencies which once regulated commercial harvest and pricessing the sea cucumbers in Pohnpei, the college marine researchers and students in three Micronesian Land Grant colleges, and the overseas sea cucumber researchers and international agencies. During the preliminary broodstock survey of this project revealed higher resources of the Holothuria scabra (the sandfish) found in the lagoon of Pohnpei suggesting a need of revising the stock survey methodologies and re-assuring management policy change near future. This will support local people to provide more oppotunities in resuming income generation activity from the sea cucumber fishery in Pohnpei, other states and region. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: The broodstck search will be modified from oruginal random search to H. scabra because of unexpectedly higher density found from a preliminary survey adjucent to the hatchery site in Pohnpei. Wild stock survey will also be modified to focus more on H. scabra, the highest valued species among the world sea cucumber market. The project focuses on this species as an immediate hatchery technology transfer target.

Impacts
As of September 30, the project completed all the hatchery system modifications and setting up a new extension facility for the brood stock holding and juvenile culture. The broodstock holding system usually uses a simple flat-bottom tank and/or earth-pond overseas. However, the project adopted a sub-sand filter (false-bottom) system in the raceway tank. This raceway tank system has advantages against conventional methods using a simple flat-bottom tank in holding the sandfish (H. scabra), which uses less sea water supply, tank cleaning and water change with a self-filtering of tank water by air-lift pumps. This system also applied a flow-through method with water exchange rate at 100 per cent a day and enabled the broodstock burrowing in the surface sand/mud layer in the tank during the daytime. Preliminary wild resource survey revealed the higher sandfish (H. scabra) density in the habitat surrounding the hatchery (10 - 20 individuals per diver per hour), but none was found at Pakin Atoll except for the lolly- fish (H. atra) and greenfish (Stichopus chloronotus) in high abundance. At Nett Point in Pohnpei, 11 commercially important species were found from this preliminary survey including the sandfish. In which unexpectedly higher number of sandfish were found in the tidal flat near mangrove shore around the hatchery.r The past surveys in 1996 and 1998 (OFCF-Japan, unpublished data) and 2005 (Bourgoin and Edward, 2005) only reported nil or near-extinct situation of the sandfish in Pohnpei lagoon. Thus, the sea cucumber resource survey, particularly the sandfish, should be re-surveyed in Pohnpei as well as the past published reports overseas by re-examining the methodologies. This short finding has already gave a significant impact on the government management policy that should be revised to develop a new management plan based on the outcomes of this project towards the end of Phase 1 work. The sandfish is the most sought-after species among the commercially high-value sea cucumbers in the world market. The hatchery technology transfer on the sandfish will be conducted more smoothly by this project as the wild- caught sandfish broodstock became available and the proposed project now focuses on the sandfish as a primary target species. A sea pen holding system for the broodstock conditioning will be deployed in 2009 work in order to compare to the raceway tank method of the project. This is because the sea cucumber broodstock conditioning has been believed to be extremely difficult for a long term holding in a relatively small, 2500-L tank. The project investigates broodstock conditioning methods by comparing the land-based and sea pen culture conditions. At this reporting date, a preliminary hatchery work commenced as one of the project staff returned from overseas, who learned the sandfish hatchery techniques developed by the WorldFish Centre, the Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research (ACIAR) and the SPC. The sandfish broodstock search and collection continues and the wild stock survey involves the state and local municipal governments and communities to establish closer collaborations.

Publications

• No publications reported this period