The Basic Methods of Pearl Farming: A Layman's Manual - CTSA

AcknowledgmentsAcknowledgmentsThe assistance and knowledge of many pearl farmers, colleagues and fellow researchers is gratefullyacknowledged. Among those who selflessly contributed to this effort to provide the basic informationneeded by farmers to start pearl farms and produce high quality pearls are: Jean and Estelle Tapu,Tyrone Tapu, Ron Hall, Taruia Matara, Tarani and Piltz Napa, Soa Tini, Simon Ellis, Anne OrcuttBailey, Kevan Main, Ben Ponia, Miles Anderson, Quentin Fong, David Thompson, Joan Rolls, JohnRowntree, Tap Pryor, Kennedy Paynter, Francis Thibodeau, Fred Ward, Timothy Dick, Kelvin andAnna Passfield and John Sprague. Several private companies also contributed to this effort: TapuPerles, Nukuoro Pearl Farm, Robert Reimers Enterprises and Black Pearls of Miconesia. Special thanksgo to my colleagues of the Coastal Resources Center of the University of Rhode Island, who providedthe moral support and flexibility to allow this manual to be written. Dr. C.L. Cheshire of the PacificBusiness Program, University of Hawaii at Manoa, kindly provided assistance with the economic aspectsof this work. The support given by CTSA and its personnel, Dr. Cheng-Sheng Lee (Director),Simon Ellis (Regional Aquaculture Extension Agent) and Kai Lee Awaya is greatly appreciated.Illustrations and photographs were prepared by Diane Nakashima, Oscar Blanco and Maria Haws. Theauthor is particularly grateful to Diane Nakashima for her efforts with the illustrations and for preparingthe cover. Cover photographs are courtesy of University of Hawaii Sea Grant.Above all, this work was inspired by the pearl farmers of Penrhyn (Tongareva), Cook Islands, whoworked to establish pearl farms while maintaining the environmental health of their lagoon.Funding for the printing of this publication was provided by the Center for Tropical and SubtropicalAquaculture (CTSA) through a grant from the Cooperative State Research, Education, and ExtensionService of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Grant #98-39500-5947). This publication was preparedwith support from a grant from the Pacific Aquaculture Development Program, University ofHawaii Sea Grant Program,under Institutional Grant No. NA86RG0041from the National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Sea Grant, Department of Commerce. UNIHI-SEAGRANT-grant # GEN 103.The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S.Department of Agriculture, CTSA, University of Hawaii Sea Grant, NOAA or any of their sub-agencies.Funding and resources were also provided by the following companies: Tapu Perles and SeaPearls.Page 1