More than 2,000 hatchery produced rabbitfish (Siganus lineatus) juveniles from Palau Community College’s multi-species hatchery at Ngermetengel, Ngeremlegui state were delivered to a newly established Aquapro Fish Farm in Koror on January 11, 2018.

The release of these fingerlings is an offshoot of the recently concluded Palau aquaculture workshop, which created a partnership between the Bureau of Marine Resources, the Nature Conservancy and PCC to promote community livelihood and food security through aquaculture development in the country.

Currently, the country’s Aquaculture Working Group is aiming to establish at least 20 pilot farms all over Palau in 2018.

Research on the refinement of the seed production technique for the two species of rabbitfish, “klesebuul” (S. lineatus) and “meas” (S. fuscescens), has been undertaken and demonstrated at PCC hatchery with the funding support coming from USDA-NIFA through the College of Micronesia Land Grant Program and Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture (CTSA).

Aside from providing free rabbitfish juveniles to the fish farmers, PCC-CRE also provides technical assistance by giving advice on proper husbandry, feeding management, and monitoring of environmental parameters in their farms.

Source: Marianas Variety