This time lobster fries will be produced in the pond instead of hatchery. Researchers of Khulna University have succeeded in producing lobster fry by conducting experiment in a pond at Chayagharia village in coastal Batiaghata of Khulna recently.
As a result, whereas earlier the lobster farming was facing serious crisis due to the lack of fries, it has now raised new hopes for greater possibilities.
Reliance on natural and hatchery sources for lobster fries will be reduced if lobster fry (PL) production in ponds is introduced. This method can help to expand lobster farming in the coastal region immensely in near future.
On the other hand, increasing the production of lobster fries in the pond will have a positive impact on exports as well, the researchers opined.
The main researcher of the project, Professor of Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline of Khulna University Dr Md Nazmul Ahsan said that due to the collapse in the production of fry at the lobster hatchery and due to government ban on extraction of fries from natural sources in the coastal area, the shrimp farmers are facing a crisis in the collection of fry. As a result, it is having a negative impact on production and exports. Farmers are also losing interest in lobster farming for adversity.
In this situation, the main goal of their research was to study the production of lobster fry in pond water as an alternative and to meet the demand for fry. If farmers can master the method of fry production in their ponds, it will open new horizons of possibilities. If the lobster farming in the village pond increases, the farmer will benefit financially, the researcher added.
Researchers from Khulna University have been conducting this research since the beginning of 2020 and inventing appropriate technology for the production of lobster fry in pond water. They conducted the research project by leasing a pond at Chayagharia village in Batiaghata.
They used some natural and technological techniques to create a conducive environment in the pond water. The control over salinity levels, the presence of oxygen, food management, water flow, and temperature of the water using native technology was a significant factor in the research. With the combination of natural environment and appropriate technology, the researchers succeeded in producing lobster fry in the pond.
According to the researchers, this discovery will greatly facilitate the availability of fry in the event of hatchery closure in the coastal area. With the fries produced in the experiment pond is now being cultivated in several other spaces including a few mini ponds inside the university campus.
Md Shaheen Parvez, Assistant Professor of the Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, of Khulna University and the Co-Researcher of the project, said the project was funded by the Center of Excellence for Climate Resilient Coastal Food Systems in collaboration with Solidaridad Network Asia, Bangladesh and a grant from the Ministry of Education. The project has been implemented with the technical assistance of Khulna University.
Khulna University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Mahmud Hossain thanked the researchers and urged them to expand the research to a wider scale and transfer the technology to the field as soon as possible so that shrimp farmers can benefit from it.
