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Stimulating investment in pearl farming in ... - World Fish Center

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Abundance, Size Structure and Quality of Silver-lip Pearl Oysters <strong>in</strong> the Solomon Islands F<strong>in</strong>al, June 20085.0 CONCLUSIONSThe <strong>in</strong>terviews with coastal communities provided <strong>in</strong>formation on the location of historicaland present day fish<strong>in</strong>g grounds for silver-lip <strong>pearl</strong> oysters and some areas of SolomonIslands where silver-lip oysters have recently been observed. The underwater visualcensuses undertaken at the eight historical fish<strong>in</strong>g grounds <strong>in</strong>dicated that the density ofsilver-lip <strong>pearl</strong> oysters was generally low and that most animals were larger than the sizeconsidered suitable for <strong>pearl</strong> farm<strong>in</strong>g. The sub-samples that were exam<strong>in</strong>ed had highquality shell with white nacre <strong>in</strong> the middle of the <strong>in</strong>terior and gold, white, or off-whitemarg<strong>in</strong>s. Kia, Mboli Passage and Wagh<strong>in</strong>a, the three major fish<strong>in</strong>g grounds surveyed, wereestimated to conta<strong>in</strong> between 1,392 and 8,638 silver-lip <strong>pearl</strong> oysters of an appropriate sizefor <strong>pearl</strong> farm<strong>in</strong>g. The paucity of the stocks exam<strong>in</strong>ed and unfavourable size of the majorityof oysters suggest that commercial exploitation of wild silver-lip <strong>pearl</strong> oysters for <strong>pearl</strong>culture is not an ecologically or economically viable option at present.The Ecology Lab Pty Ltd – Mar<strong>in</strong>e and Freshwater Studies Page 15

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