Technical publications

Apple snails have become a major pest of wetland rice in much of Southeast Asia. Two species are involved, Pomacea canaliculata and P. maculata. One or both of these species have become widely established not only in many parts of Southeast Asia but also in other parts of the world. This book provides an update on research into the biology, management and use of apple snails and highlights the need to prevent further spread of these species.

The success stories of many small-scale farmers in both Asian and African countries have brought insights on the effectiveness and self-sustaining mechanism of the farmer-to-farmer approach of aquaculture extension. This document will only serve as a guide on how to implement farmer-to-farmer approaches on small-scale freshwater aquaculture extension. Translations of the guidebook are available in Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Burmese, English, French, Khmer, Lao, Malay, Nepali and Thai.

The objective of this manual was to provide basic guidelines for the hatchery production of Pa Phia (Labeo chrysophekadion) fingerlings. It includes information on managing and spawning broodstock, genetic guidelines, egg incubation, hatching larviculture and fry rearing. Although the guidelines were specifically developed for production of Pa Phia at government hatcheries in the Lao PDR, they may be applied to other, related, species and could be adopted and commercialised by the private sector hatcheries

A Regional Proficiency Testing Program for Aquatic Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratories in Asia-Pacific was developed to strengthen diagnostic capability across Asia. This capability was identified as a requirement to facilitate the sanitary safety of trade in aquatic animal products. The program provided 41 laboratories across the Asia-Pacific with the opportunity to assess their diagnostic performance for 10 regionally significant aquatic animal pathogens, and to adapt or modify practices where necessary to improve.

This book is the proceedings of the “Regional Consultation on Culture-Based Fisheries Development in Asia”, held in Siem Reap, Cambodia, 21-23rd of October 2014, under the auspices of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific (NACA). The consultation was jointly organised by NACA and the Fisheries Administration of the Royal Government of Cambodia.

This study was designed to improve our understanding of the main causal pathways for white spot disease (WSD) in a representative, 50-pond shrimp farming system in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The longitudinal observational study focused on recording the occurrence of different genotypes of the causal infectious agent, white spot syndrome virus (WSSV), in selected components of the system across time, and looking for relationships with pond outcomes, particularly WSD occurrence.

This manual provides practical guidelines for those engaged in the nursery culture of groupers in Indonesia as well as elsewhere in the tropics. It provides information on husbandry of groupers in the nursery phase, to reduce losses due to disease and cannibalism, and thus to increase the profitability of grouper nursing. The guidelines are derived from outcomes of ACIAR-funded research as well as other published information on grouper nursery management.

This manual provides guidelines for the production of tiger grouper fingerlings. It outlines best-practice methods for broodstock maintenance, spawning, egg incubation and rearing of larvae through to 2–3 cm, fully metamorphosed juveniles. The guidelines have been developed from the outcomes of ACIAR-funded research, as well as from the experience of Indonesian, Philippine and Australian scientists and commercial hatchery operators, and published information. It provides an aid for improving the availability of grouper seed stock.

Shrimp aquaculture is threatened by climatic changes that affect infrastructure and livelihoods of farmers. Ecological changes, inundation of low-lying lands and saline intrusions into freshwater regions are likely to cause substantial dislocation of communities and disruption of farming systems. The focus of the present study report is on mapping the small scale farmer’s perceptions and attitudes towards climate change impacts and their adaptive capacities to address the impacts in Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh, India.

This case study examines the impacts of climate change on milkfish farmers in Iloilo. Farmer perceptions of climate change, attitudes and adaptation strategies were mapped via focus group discussion, stakeholder workshops and questionnaires. Measures that could be achieved to reduce vulnerability to climate change include sustainable aquaculture practices; diversification of farmers’ income sources; diversification of culture species; utilising natural resources to increase productivity; and building farmer capacities through access to information and knowledge.

The present study identifies changes in reservoir filling patterns and water retention period of seasonal reservoirs in Sri Lanka in five administrative districts from 1960 to 2010. Results reveal that there is high drawdown in the recent past in seasonal reservoirs compared to the 1960s, and a forward shifting pattern of drawdown due to altered rainfall patterns. These changes have affected the culture season and the duration of the culture period of stocked fingerlings in the reservoirs.

The catfish industry in the Mekong Delta faces several risks and challenges including disease, environmental issues, fluctuating price, higher quality requirement of the product, and climate changes, including salt water intrusion. The different production zones were found to be different in terms of their climate change impacts, productivity, culture system and socio-economic characteristics. This study examines farmers perceptions of climate change, scientific and policy support requirements and potential adaptation strategies to sustain the industry.

The shrimp farming case study was conducted in Cà Mau and Bạc Liêu provinces, Mekong Delta, Southern Vietnam by: (1) organized stakeholder workshops to map farmer's perceptions, adaptation measures and agencies involved; and (2) questionnaire survey to assess vulnerability of the production system to climatic changes and extreme climatic events. Farmer perceptions of climate change and possible adaptation measures were identified. Policy frameworks including the policy options were recommended and an action plan proposed.

This practical manual "Guide to establishment of community-based aquaculture management groups" was prepared by the national team of Vietnam under the ASEAN Foundation supported project "Strengthening capacity of small holder ASEAN aquaculture farmers for competitive and sustainable aquaculture".

This manual is intended for the use by the current and prospective small-scale farmer groups who are interested in obtaining accreditation for their production process. The objective is to provide them an easy-to-follow, stepwise guide that can be used as a practical tool in their venture of attaining group certification. However, this can be used by the field extension officers and certifiers who are directly involved in the process or other interested parties.

This practical manual covers key aspects for successful grouper farming including formation of farmer groups, cage crop planning, crop calendar and better management practices for cage aquaculture of grouper. These include site selection, design, cage preparation, seed selection and stocking practices, feed, water and health management, harvest and post-harvest, record keeping, marketing and capital strengthening. It is designed for use by small-scale farmers.

This practical manual "Better management practices for seaweed farming" is produced by the Philippines national team under the ASEAN Foundation supported project "Strengthening capacity of small holder ASEAN aquaculture farmers for competitive and sustainable aquaculture" implemented by NACA in five ASEAN countries. The long-term objective of the project was to assist ASEAN small- scale aquaculture farmers improve their livelihoods by being competitive in markets and improving farm management practices to deliver quality and sustainably produced aquaculture products.

This study is a continuation of “Evaluation of the impact of the Indian Ocean tsunami and US antidumping duties on the shrimp farming sector of South and South-East Asia” with the aim of assessing the impact of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and the introduction of anti-dumping duties on shrimp farming in the Asian region, with special focus on the effect that these unforeseen events had on shrimp prices and livelihoods of the stakeholders.

This project was conducted to demonstrate small scale shrimp farmer group access to international markets through certification schemes. This project proved that small-scale farmers organised into groups, can improve their technical capacities, and achieve access to markets. This achievement was the result of strong partnerships with producers, private sector and government agencies assisting to develop a sustainable business model for small scale aquaculture. Cost of compliance was found to be a significant barrier to entry.

Tài liệu này là phiên bản thứ 3.0 về “Thực hành quy phạm thực hành quản lý tốt hơn (BMP) cho nghề nuôi cá tra vùng Đồng bằng Sông Cửu Long, Việt Nam”. Phiên bản này được chỉnh sửa từ phiên bản 2.0 dựa trên kết quả thí nghiệm ở 11 điểm trình diễn tự nguyện thực hiện theo BMP phiên bản 2.0 và ý kiến phản hồi của các hộ tham gia trình diễn và các nhóm liên quan khác trong các đợt hội thảo. Cùng với tài liệu này, nông dân cũng được dự án cung cấp một bản hướng dẫn BMP đơn giản hơn bằng tiếng Việt (chỉ bao gồm các bước thực hiện BMP) và sổ ghi chép các hoạt động hằng ngày. “Gói tài liệu” này được phổ biến đến người nuôi nhằm thúc đẩy quá trình ứng dụng BMP vào nghề nuôi cá tra ở Việt Nam.