Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center Aquaculture Department
SEAFDEC/AQD Institutional Repository http://repository.seafdec.org.ph
Journals/Magazines Aqua Farm News
1988
Milkfish and shrimp fry grounds and seasons
Aquaculture Department, Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center
Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, Aquaculture Department (1988). Milkfish and shrimp fry grounds and seasons. Aqua Farm News, 6(5), 5-7.
http://hdl.handle.net/10862/2697
Downloaded from http://repository.seafdec.org.ph, SEAFDEC/AQD's Institutional Repository
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MILKFISH AND SHRIMP F R Y GROUNDS AND SEASONS
MILKFISH F R Y
M ilk fis h fry occur from India to T a h iti and from southern Japan to M alaysia. They have not been reported outside this range, probably due to non-use of the appropriate gear at the right place and tim e. A t present, only the Ph ilippines, Indonesia, and Taiwan c o lle c t m ilk fish fry for a co m m e rcia l cu ltu re, w hile several countries c o lle c t fry and fingerlings for experim ental cu ltu re (e.g., Sri Lanka, K irib a ti, F iji, India).
M ilk fis h fry grounds in the Ph ilipp in e s have been w e ll surveyed.
F ry grounds are located throughout the country although they are more prevalent on the western and southern coasts of islands than on eastern and northern shores. The m ilk fish fry grounds are usually fla t sandy beaches, riv e r mouths, and tid a l creeks and mangrove swamps.
M ilk fis h fry are available throughout the year at one location or another, but individual fry grounds experience marked peaks and slack periods at ce rtain tim es of the year. The season begins earlie st in Mindanao (Cotabato-Zam boanga) where it peaks in M ay. A fte r a decline in catch through August, a sm aller peak occurs in Septem ber to Novem ber. In the Visayas (Cebu, Panay, Negros), the season begins in M a rc h -A p ril, peaking in M ay, and lasts t ill N ovem ber-D ecem ber. w ith a second peak in O ctober in some fry grounds and none in others.
In northern Luzon (Ilocos, Cagayan, Pangasinan), the season s t a r t s in A p r il and lasts t ill O ctober w ith a peak in M ay-June.
The d iffe re n ce in the length of the m ilk fis h fry season seems to be due to the la titu d in a l position of the fry grounds (Table 1).
The P h ilipp ines covers from 5 to 21°N la titu d e s. F ry appear early (January-February) in the south, and later (M a rch -A p ril) in the north. They disappear e a rlie r in the north (August-O ctober) than in the south (Decem ber- January). M oreover, in the south at latitudes about 5-11º N, there are two peaks, of which the form er is higher; in the north 12-21º N, there is only one peak. In w estern Panay (Antique Province), the two towns of Pandan and H a m tik, 130 km apart on the same coast have d iffe re n t fry seasons.
In Pan dan, m ilk fis h fry start to appear at the end of M arch and disappear early in Decem ber, w ith a peak in May. In H am tik, fry appear in the m iddle of M arc h and disappear in the m iddle of Decem ber w ith peaks in M ay and October;
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Table 1. M ilk fis h fry co lle c tio n season at various lo c a litie s from north to south in the P h ilipp ines (A fte r Kum agai 1984).
Latitude N Localities Collection season Peak Santa Ana April to October June
Badoc April to October (July) August 17.5°
San Fernando April to July May Lingayen (March) April to July June 15.0°
Batangas (March) April to July May
Naujan April to August May
Tabaco April to November May
12.5°
Culasi April to November June
Hamtic March to November May & October Cadiz March to November May & October 10.0°
Narra March to December May & October Sipalay March to December May & October Naawan (February) March to
December
May & November 7.5°
Malita February to December April & October Zamboanga (January) February
to December
(March) April & October (November)
Glan Throughout the year (March) April &
November SHRIMP F R Y
Shrim p fry are often c o lle c te d together w ith m ilk fish fry from shore w aters as w ell as from inland w aters where the la tte r can hardly be caught.
Shrim p fry are present all year round w ith two peak seasons a year: June- Ju ly and O ctober-N ovem ber. How ever, there are d ifferen ces among species:
Species
P. monodon July-A ug ust; N ovem ber-D ecem ber P. semisulcatus Fe bru ary-M arch ; N ovem ber-D ecem ber P. merguiensis/P. indicus June-July; O ctober-N ovem ber
P. japonicus M a rc h -A p ril; Septem ber-Novem ber
Seasonal occurrence seems to depend p rim arily on the prevailing monsoon and secondarily on. the geographic location (Table 2). Shrim p fry seem to be ca rrie d by w ind-generated currents. In addition, the co lle c tin g a c tiv ity depends on the demand, e.g., shrim p c u ltu rists do not buy shrimp fry im m ediately p rio r to the dry season because grow th of shrim ps in ponds is slow at high sa lin itie s.
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In the past 10 years, several shrimp h atcheries have sprung up in the P h ilip p in e s to supply the great demand for P . monodon and P . m erguiensis- P. indicus fry. The demand for w ild fry nevertheless rem ains undiminished due to the expansion of shrimp cu ltu re operations supplying the export m arket.
Table 2. L o c a l and seasonal occurrences of P. monodon fry, based on interview s w ith fry c o lle c to rs in the P h ilippines (Motoh 1981).
Place Collection period Peak season
LUZON
Dalahican Southwest monsoon August
Atimonan Northwest monsoon February
Calauag Year round Northeast monsoon
(February to June except.
March and April) VISAYAS
Batan Year round November to February
Barotac Nuevo June to October August
Villa, Tigbauan May to December October to November Bolanon, Danao March to September May to June
Tabao, Caingin Northwest (December to February) & Southwest
(June to November) August-October
Aguisan Year round November
Bocana, Tabla July to December August to September November
Sipalay March to June, October to December
June, November
Malabugas April to December May to June
Polo March to June, October-
December
June, November
MINDANAO
Dapitan Year round September to October
Dipolog Year round September to November
Ozamis Northeast & Southwest monsoon
July, November to December
Zamboanga September-November -
Tagum Northeast & Southeast monsoon
April to May, October to November
Matina, Aplaya Northeast monsoon April to May
Source : Bagarinao TU, Solis N B, Vil l aver WR, V illa lu z A C . 1986.
Important Fish and Shrimp Fry in P h ilip p in e C o astal Waters:
Id e n tifica tio n , C o lle c tio n , and H andling. Extension Manual No. 10, S E A F D E C A quaculture D epartm ent, Tigbauan, Iloilo.
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