Tropical Aquaculture Research in Sippy Downs, Queensland | College & University

Tropical Aquaculture Research

Locality: Sippy Downs, Queensland

Phone: +61 7 5456 3756

Address: 90 Sippy Downs Dr 4556 Sippy Downs, QLD, Australia

Website: http://www.usc.edu.au

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25.01.2022 At a time when viruses are a popular but negative topic of conversation, here is some positive press. Microbiologists at #USC have demonstrated the potential of 'bacteriophage therapy' to treat bacterial infection within aquaculture systems. Vibrio bacteria can cause huge losses for aquaculture facilities, but the USC team has shown that bacteria-killing viruses, called bacteriophages, can possibly reduce or eliminate such infections.... Recent publications by the USC team have shown that bacteriophages isolated from seawater are effective in treating Vibrio infection of micro-algae cultures and oyster larvae. The latest publication in the journal 'Antibiotics' is open access and can be downloaded at: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/9/7/415 #bacteriophage #therapy #microbiology #aquaculture #bacteria #kiling #viruses

25.01.2022 Congratulations to JayR Gorospe on the recent publication of her paper ‘Is culture performance of juvenile sandsh, Holothuria scabra, in ocean-based nursery systems inuenced by proximity to milksh (Chanos chanos) farms and hapa net mesh size?’ in the January 2021 issue of the journal Aquaculture. The paper can be downloaded at https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1be2XACeY5IKf. A 30-day field experiment in Bolinao, Philippines evaluated the impacts of proximity to milksh farm...s and dierent hapa net mesh sizes on periphyton (food) characteristics and growth performance of sandsh juveniles in hapa-net-based ocean nursery culture. Results showed that sandsh juveniles can grow in environments with nutrient enrichment; however, areas that are close to mariculture activity may support improved growth due to increases in periphyton biomass. The use of ner mesh (400m) hapa nets positively impacted juvenile survival, and would support earlier transfer of juveniles from the hatchery to the ocean reducing husbandry inputs and costs. Results allow fine-tuning of current nursery culture procedures for sandfish in the Philippines.

25.01.2022 Collectors and field assistants remove sandfish for tissue sampling from a makeshift pen where they were held following collection at Nukunuku Village, Lakeba Island, Lau archipelago. Fifty animals were sampled for tissue, which will be used for DNA extraction at the University of the South Pacific (#USP) by USP PhD Candidate Kelly Brown, who is investigating the genetic structure and connectivity of sandfish populations in Fiji. This work is being carried out in parallel with broader #ACIAR research in the region focussing on increasing technical skills and supporting community-based sea cucumber production, and involves USP and #USC #TAR researchers.

24.01.2022 Amazing vision for the future of Australia's aquaculture sector!

19.01.2022 Locally-grown pearls and half-pearl jewellery were the focus of a recent three-day photography shoot in Vava’u, Tonga, to create images promoting Tonga's burgeoning mab pearl industry. The shoot involved local female and male volunteer models, with photographs taken by Tongan photographer, Keni Photography. The new pearl images will soon be the face of billboards for Vava’u (i.e. the airport, town and Vava’u Pearl Centre), and will be used for future promotional activities ...and material such as flyers, websites etc. The images in this post are a small sample of the collection. This activity was supported by #ACIAR, #USC, the Ministry of Fisheries - Tonga, and the Tongan #Pearl #Farmers #Association.

19.01.2022 #Mab #pearl farming is now being trialed on one of #Tonga’s most remote islands, Niua Toputapu, by the Ministry of Fisheries - Tonga (MoF) in conjunction with local farmers. Located approximately 300km north of Vava’u and 240km south west of Samoa, #Niua #Toputapu was identified several years ago by MoF as a prime location for the introduction of mabé pearl farming. To ensure that proven farming procedures and technologies are successfully transferred to Niua Toputapu, MoF ...organised for Fisheries Officer, Patelo Tauvaka, to spend two years working with local pearl project and Aquaculture staff. Patelo recently returned to the island with 240 hatchery-produced Pteria penguin pearl oysters. The precious oysters were swiftly taken from the Niua Toputapu airport to the island’s wharf to be processed by Patelo and a team of eager trainees. They were then drilled, secured to ropes, and transferred to a new demonstration pearl line that will be monitored and managed by the trainees. The largest 20 oysters will soon be ready for seeding, and then Patelo will demonstrate how to implant the oysters with nuclei. All going well, we will be able to report on Niua Toputapu’s first harvest of mabé pearls in 2021! This research is supported by #ACIAR through the #USC #TAR pearl project. Pictured: Oysters attached to ropes and ready to go to sea. Photograph by Patelo Tauvaka.

19.01.2022 Great news on the sale of pearl oyster spat by the women's group at Ravita, to our research collaborators at Civa Fiji Pearls. #USC-#TAR and the Ministry of Fisheries, Fiji, have worked in partnership to establish several spat collection enterprises in Fiji, including at Ravita, that supply oysters for production of high-quality round pearls. #Fiji #Ravita #Livelihoods #round #pearls #oysters

19.01.2022 There are a few features that make sea cucumbers unique from the rest of the echinoderm 'normies'.

17.01.2022 Congratulations Sawani Village!

17.01.2022 Pictured: researcher, Dr Cathy Hair, at an experimental #sea #cucumber culture pen near #Kavieng, Papua New Guinea. #USC #TAR research in the region has worked towards development of community-based mariculture systems supporting local livelihoods.

17.01.2022 Meet talented artist and carver, Andrew Motuliki, a regular and integral face at Tonga’s Vava'u Pearl Centre. Son of the late master carver, Leonatie Motuliki (senior), creativity and craftsmanship are in Andrew’s blood. Since 2019, he has been a trainer at the Pearl Centre, where regular education and support are provided for the local half-pearl industry. In late-2019, Andrew and New Zealand designer, Neke Moa, co-trained a workshop in Vava'u focused on Kupesi (traditiona...l design from Tonga) carving, and producing jewellery sets for sale. The aim was to build the capacity of pearl farmer-artisans, and up-skill Andrew as a future pearl handicraft trainer in Tonga. Working alongside Neke, it is hoped that after COVID19, Andrew will continue to conduct handicraft workshops in Tonga and teach artisans to produce beautiful and unique pearl jewellery. In addition to his role at the Pearl Centre, Andrew works closely with his brother and talented carver, Leonatie (junior), in their small business producing high-quality mab pearl jewellery and handicrafts. Education and training provided at the #Vava'u #Pearl #Centre is funded by #Tonga #Skills and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (#ACIAR) through the #USC #TAR pearl livelihoods project.

17.01.2022 Do you work with purpose?

16.01.2022 A floating hapa ocean nursery for sea cucumbers has proven successful in Cabunga-an, Mercedes, #Eastern #Samar, the #Philippines for rearing first- and second-stage #sandfish #juveniles. The #hapa ocean #nursery is situated at one of three new sea ranch expansion project sites in the region. An average survival rate of 55%, with weight around 4.66 grams, has been achieved. The sandfish juveniles were reared for two months in the nursery, using techniques taught to local fis...her folk under the #USC #TAR sea cucumber research project, ‘Increasing technical skills for sea cucumber production in Vietnam and the Philippines’. Project partner, the People’s Organization, Cabunga-an Fisherfolk Association (#CFA), was given 5000 first-stage hatchery-produced sandfish juveniles by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-Guiuan Marine Fisheries Development Center (#BFAR-#GMFDC) in July 2020. After 60 days, the Guiuan Development Foundation Inc (#GDFI) and CFA members harvested and sorted the juveniles, then transferred them to an advanced pen nursery for further rearing. Adult sea cucumbers will soon be released into the Cabunga-an sea ranch. This project is funded by #ACIAR. For more information on this project, go to: https://www.usc.edu.au//increasing-technical-skills-for-se

16.01.2022 Sea cucumbers go by many names!

15.01.2022 Researchers at The University of the South Pacific and #USC #TAR have been engaged in fieldwork with coastal communities in Fiji to collect sandfish specimens - a commercially valuable species of sea cucumber - for DNA sampling. Following the collection at Lakeba Village, Vanua Levu, reported on this page last month, field studies were carried out at Natuvu Village, Wailevu West District, Cakaudrove Province, Vanua Levu. Pictured L TO R: Natuvu Village tribe headman, Mr T V...ola (Turaga ni Yavusa), Mr Ilisoni Pita (Ministry of Fisheries), two local fishers, USP PhD candidate, Mr Kelly Brown, and Dr Monal Lal (USC TAR). The DNA samples are being analysed to understand stock structure, genetic diversity and the status of Fijian populations. Information will be shared with project partner, the Ministry of Fisheries, Fiji, to inform fishery and aquaculture management policy. This work is being carried out in parallel with broader Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (#ACIAR) research in the region focusing on increasing technical skills and supporting community-based sea cucumber production. It forms part of USP PhD Candidate Kelly Brown's research, one of several technical exchange arrangements operating across multiple USC TAR and ACIAR research projects. This approach facilitates collaborative research and capacity building between partner institutions and countries.

15.01.2022 #USC #TAR is proud to be part of the recently-established Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research (#ACPIR). ACPIR brings together social science, science and health academics and development practitioners, with a shared vision to advance a broad range of issues in the #Pacific #islands. These include: sustainable economic development, cultural heritage conservation, and human health improvements. If you would like more information on the centre, please contact us at this page.

15.01.2022 Recent mab pearl (half-pearl) grading training at the coastal villages #Namarai and #Nacoubau, #Fiji, focused on equipping local farmers with the skills to determine the quality of their pearls allowing them to achieve maximum returns on pearl sales. #USC #TAR post-doctoral scientist, Pranesh Kishore, taught the pearl farmers how to rate pearls for quality and a range of other marketing and business skills. Expansion of the half-pearl sector in Namarai and Nacoubau is helping to create diverse employment and livelihood opportunities. This training is part of #ACIAR-funded, USC TAR-coordinated research in the region.

14.01.2022 It has been a challenging year for Australia's pearling industry, with COVID-19 causing a range of issues for remote pearl farms across northern Australia. Autore Pearls, which is Australia's second-biggest pearl producer, says the logistics of running its newest farm in the Northern Territory has been a real test.

14.01.2022 Another great Trivia Tuesday from the Niche Center for Sea Cucumber.

12.01.2022 VALE - Sioeli Mafi Sadly, Sioeli Mafi, a pioneer and champion of Tonga’s mabé pearl industry, passed away this week, age 73. Sioeli had a long and successful career as a pearl farmer, and was recently awarded the top Honour for his mabé pearl display at the Vava’u Agricultural Show. ... Sioeli's legacy will continue in the further development of Tonga’s mabé pearl sector, for which he helped lay a strong foundation. His generosity and dedication to mentoring new mabé pearl farmers and helping others succeed will always be remembered. Our thoughts and prayers are with Sioeli's family and community.

12.01.2022 The latest edition of ACIAR's 'Partners' magazine is now available for free online.

12.01.2022 The Navatadua Women's Group (Raviravi, Fiji) and their community were pleased to unveil a billboard presented recently to their village outlining their involvement in the #ACIAR-funded, #USC #TAR pearl livelihoods project, operated in partnership with the Ministry of Fisheries, Fiji. This project develops and supports pearl-based livelihoods through spat collection, mab pearl production and handicraft training. Fiji’s Prime Minister, the Hon. Frank Bainimarama, is pictured ...at the billboard unveiling, along with members of the Women’s Group. #Fiji #mab #pearls #livelihoods

11.01.2022 A recent review, the first comprehensive review of its kind, conducted within the #USC #TAR project ‘Accelerating the development of finfish mariculture in Cambodia through south-south research cooperation with Indonesia’, has investigated the use of seaweed supplements in fish diets to boost their immune systems and enhance growth. The review can be downloaded at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/raq.12504 Fish diseases and antibiotic resistance have a signif...icant negative impact on food security and human health. This review quantified the benefits of adding seaweed to fish diets - including carnivore, herbivore, freshwater and salt water fish - to identify the best seaweed varieties for fish health. Research is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.

11.01.2022 Recent monitoring of sea cucumber populations seven years after the #USC #TAR-coordinated #sea #cucumber project, ‘Scaling up community-based sea cucumber culture in the Philippines and Vietnam’ began, has confirmed that high volumes of premium-grade-size sandfish are being grown at the #Philippines’ #Maliwaliw Island pilot sandfish sea ranching site. This research is driven in the Philippines by the Guiuan Development Foundation Inc (#GDFI), multiple research collaborators, local government, farmers and community groups, focused on achieving healthy sandfish populations. The #ACIAR-funded project was designed to further develop technical skills to improve the reliability of culture methods to support increased production capacity and expansion of sustainable community-based sea cucumber farming in the region.

09.01.2022 Fiji’s Raviravi community recently recorded a healthy spat fall with larger-than-average sized Pteria penguin spat harvested from collectors deployed in October 2019. An average size of 78 mm allowed harvested spat to be set up directly onto Cord Technical Nakasai rearing systems - which provide an immediate substrate for byssal attachment of oysters - then placed into protective chicken wire meshing. This new oyster crop will be used in an experiment to determine optimum s...tocking density and mesh wire size for best growth rates of Pteria penguin spat. The latest crop will be cultured for another year before the oysters reach appropriate seeding size, around end-2021, for the production of more stunning mab pearls. #Fiji #Raviravi #pearls #oysters #Pacific #livelihoods #ACIAR #USC

07.01.2022 Our congratulations to Greg Dobson on the publication of his latest paper 'Utilisation of organic matter from Babylon snail (Babylonia areolata) culture sediments by cultured juvenile sandfish (Holothuria scabra)' in the latest issue of the international journal 'Aquaculture Reports'. Greg's results are an important step in further developing multi-trophic culture systems for sandfish. His article can be accessed free of charge from the journal's web page: https://www.sci...encedirect.com//artic/pii/S2352513420306220 This paper reports on an experiment to assess the ability of sandfish to utilise organic matter in sediments from Babylon snail (Babylonia areolata) pond aquaculture. Growth was most heavily correlated with sandfish density, and was greater when sandfish were cultured at low density on pond substrate, where there was an 87.4 % greater weight gain than sandfish cultured on clean sand at the same density. Nitrogen content of pond substrate was significantly reduced in treatments with sandfish; however, sandfish were unable to mitigate organic enrichment resulting from Babylonia culture. #Babylonia #areolata #Holothuria #scabra #pond #aquaculture

07.01.2022 Tonga’s recent #mabe’ #pearl carving and training workshop, led by Vava’u artisan and carver, Andrew Motuliki, and jointly funded by #ACIAR through the #USC #TAR pearl livelihoods and #Tonga #Fish pathway projects, taught local pearl farmers how to design and carve half-pearl jewellery and pearl shell for commercial sale, incorporating Kupesi motifs, the traditional method of storytelling. According to Motuliki, the workshop, which was held on one of the main islands in Ha’apai, was a big success, enabling confident use of professional production approaches. Participants enjoyed incorporating local history and utilising their pearls' magnificent colours in a range of eye-catching products.

05.01.2022 Congratulations on the most recent publication from the project '#Finfish #mariculture development in #Cambodia' which discusses potential new feed opportunities for finfish aquaculture. As part of recent training in #Indonesia, #Cambodian #Fisheries Administration researchers sampled potential ingredients for barramundi feed, then analysed the ingredients at the Research Institute for #Coastal #Aquaculture, #Maros, South Sulawesi. Some are now being used in test diets pr...oduced at the Marine Aquaculture Research and Development Centre (#MARDeC) at Sihanoukville, Cambodia. This research is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (#ACIAR) and coordinated by #USC #TAR. To access the full article, contact this page directly or go to: https://www.aquaasiapac.com/

05.01.2022 Great news for Fiji's seaweed farmers!

03.01.2022 Fantastic work by the Ministry of Fisheries, Fiji.

02.01.2022 Fantastic footage and insight into how sea cucumbers play a vital role in keeping our oceans healthy.

02.01.2022 Mab pearl implanting was explained in detail recently by the Navatadua Women's Group (Raviravi, Fiji) to Fiji Prime Minister, the Hon. Frank Bainimarama, who went on to successfully complete the process under close supervision by the women’s group. The PM’s oyster is now being farmed to help culture some of Fiji’s finest mab pearls. #USC #TAR pearl livelihoods research in the region, funded by #ACIAR, aims to help women like those from the Navatadua Women's Group, improve their livelihoods.

02.01.2022 #ACIAR's new round of scholarships, run collaboratively with The University of the South Pacific (#USP) and The Fiji National University (#FNU), has been announced. USC-TAR's, Dr Pranesh Kishore, is pictured in the post seeding an oyster for pearl production.

01.01.2022 Naua Lakai - pearl farmer, talented artisan and supervisor of the Vava’u Pearl Centre, Tonga - is pictured in this post by the Australian High Commission, Tonga. Their Direct Aid Program supports projects that contribute to sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction in the region.