1

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

The abalone industry in the Philippines, which solely depends on

harvesting natural stocks (mainly of the Donkey’s Ear Abalone Haliotis

asinina) (Tahil and Juinio-Menez, 1999), began in 1971 (BCS, 2017), with

volume and total export values reaching more than 400 tonnes and US$ 5

million in 1997, respectively (University of Asia et al., 2000). The

commercial abalone catch in the Philippines increased from 122 metric

tons (mt) in 1993 to 448 mt in 1996 but fell to 190 mt in 1998 (FAO,

2000). Abalone farming in the country is still a growing industry. The

relative scarcity of abalone species and their high price on world markets

have created much interest in their cultivation, with many countries

undertaking support as a part of emerging industries. In the Philippines,

efforts for the development of hatchery protocol is done by SEAFDEC but

the study is still on-going.

Abalone (H. asinina) locally known as "lapas", "sobra-sobra", or

"kapinan" is a marine gastropod with very high commercial value.

Aquaculture development planning in several states has identified this

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abalone (SEAFDEC, 2000) as a high priority based on current investment

and industry potential.

Due to its high commercial value, wild stocks are over-exploited to

near depletion as there are no existing laws specifically for abalone

(SEAFDEC, 1997).

There are several published works on the growth and survival of H.

asinina fed with different species of macroalgae; however, these were

done in the controlled environment. Study on the grow-out of this species

in open-sea cages is still limited. This study, hence, was proposed to

determine the growth and survival rate at different stocking densities of

wild H. asinina fed with red algae (Galaxaura oblongata and Gracilaria

edulis) reared in floating net cages in the coastal area in Barangay San

Roque, municipality of Socorro, Surigao del Norte. Local gleaners reported

that the barangay has abundant abalone before it was overexploited.

Results of this study would have some implication on the aquaculture and

conservation of H. asinina.
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Objectives of the Study

This study aimed to determine the growth and survival of wild

abalone, H. asinina Linnaeus 1758, fed with red macroalgae (G. oblongata

and G. edulis) at different stocking densities and reared in floating net

cages in the coastal area of Barangay San Roque, Socorro, Surigao del

Norte for 90 days. Specifically, it aimed to:

1. Determine the growth performance of H. asinina in terms of shell

length (mm) and body weight (g) fed with G. oblongata singly, G.

edulis singly and combination of the two species of macroalgae at 50

percent ratio at different stocking densities (80, 100 and 120

pcs/cage) reared in open sea cages.

2. Determine the Feed Conversion Ration and survival of H. asinina fed

with G. oblongata and G. edulis at different stocking densities

reared in floating net cages;

3. Determine the appropriate stocking density of H. asinina fed with G.

oblongata and G. edulis and cultured in floating net cages;

4. Determine the cost and return of rearing abalone (H. asinina) fed

with different macroalgae and reared in floating net cages at

different stocking densities.

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Significance of the Study

Haliotis asinina is one of the most commercially important molluscs

worldwide. This study hopes to contribute additional knowledge to the

present understanding of this species based on the growth and survival of

abalone from the wild, and stocking density using a locally-available diet.

Information generated would significantly help producers’ especially local

farmers on a cost-effective abalone production.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This study was limited in the determination of growth

performance, survival, feed conversion ratio and profitability of abalone,

H. asinina, fed with G. oblongata and G. edulis and reared in cages in the

coastal area of Brgy. San Roque, Socorro, Surigao del Norte for 90 days

from July to October 2018.

The prevailing water quality parameters such as dissolved oxygen,

pH, salinity, temperature, water transparency, nitrate and phosphate were

also considered in this study.

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Definition of Terms

Abalone refers to a type of conch belonging to the family Haliotidae of

the class Gastropoda. It inhabits rocky reef areas of coasts

facing the outer sea. It feeds mainly on seaweeds, and has a

demonstrated limited mobility (Surtida, 2000).

Culture refers to the rearing of animals with the aim of improving them

(Schein, 1991).

Dissolved Oxygen refers to the amount of elemental oxygen in solution

under existing atmospheric temperature and pressure (Kramer,

1987)

Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) refers to the amount of feed consumed

to the weight gained (Omasaki et al., 2017).

Feeding Rate refers to the amount of feed given daily to the culture

stock, expressed as percentage of organism’s biomass per unit

at a particular time and it is expressed as g/m2 (Bautista, 1994).

Growth Performance refers to the development of abalone in terms of

body length, width and weight (Mgaya and Mercer, 1995).

pH refers as the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion activity

(Schwalfenberg, 2012).
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Salinity refers to the degree of saltiness of water and is expressed in

parts per thousand (ppt). It also refers to the quantity of salt in

grams per liter of seawater (Gross, 1980).

Stocking density refers to the process of releasing abalone in a body of

water (Ellis, 2001)

Survival rate refers to the product of the total number of stocks

harvested at the time over the total number of initial stocks

(Henson and Ries, 1995).

Temperature refers to the degree of hotness or coldness of air, water,

or the body as shown by the thermometer (Precht, 2013).

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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Biology

The abalone (H. asinina) is a species of herbivorous marine

gastropod belonging to the phylum Mollusca, class Gastropoda, subclass

Prosobranchia, order Archaeogastropoda, family Haliotidae and genus

Haliotis (McNamara and Johnson, 1995). They are known as the donkey's

ear abalone, ass-ear abalone or lapas. They have broad, flattened

asymmetrical shells, and large fleshy bodies. Its head is greenish, its

marginal frill green with blotches of dark green and red. Its foot is creamy

with brown markings. The smallest individual from the wild with a mature

gonad is about 40 mm shell length while hatchery reared abalone reach

maturity at about 35 mm. This abalone may spawn throughout the year

(SEAFDEC, 1997).

The tropical abalone, H. asinina, grows to a marketable size of 55-

60 mm in one year, which is much faster than the growth rates of other

tropical and sub-tropical species (McNamara and Johnson, 1995). This

local abalone is the largest among the few tropical species reaching a

maximum shell size of 100 mm (Jarayabhand and Paphavasit, 1996). Early

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juveniles feed on benthic diatoms, and after reaching a size of about 5-10

mm shell length they can feed on macro-algae (Setyono, 2015; Setyono

and Dwiono, 2011).

Distribution and Ecology

There are about 100 species of abalone worldwide (Surtida, 2000).

Five of those are found in the Philippines including H. asinina, H. varia, H.

ovina, H. glabra, H. planate (Creencia et al., 2014). H. asinina is the

largest of the tropical abalone species and occurs throughout the Indo-

Pacific. They are common in Tawi-tawi, Bohol, Panagatan, and Eastern

Samar. They live on the underside of coralline rocks during the day but

come out to feed at night. They live in sheltered bays with good water

movement and that are far from estuaries. Fishers harvest the abalone by

detaching these by hand or by hooks. They have blue-gray mother-of-

pearls that can be made into buttons, buckles, inlays, ornamental

ashtrays, jewelry. The shell is used in traditional medicine. The viscera

can be made into good quality glue. Abalone meat is a highly priced

delicacy, and is about 20% protein. It is usually processed (dried, canned

in brine, smoked in oil, seasoned and roasted) or eaten fresh (SEAFDEC,

1997).
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The success of abalone aquaculture depends on selecting the best

species for a given culture environment (Fermin and Buen, 2000).

SEAFDEC (1997) reported that the requirements for sea-based culture of

abalone Haliotis asinina are good water circulation, protection from

typhoons and poaching, and water depth; at least 2 m at lowest tide (for

floating net cage culture) (Gallardo and Salayo, 2003). Creencia et al.

(2014) reported that the optimum water quality requirements are clean

sea water, 8 pH level, 26-28oC water temperature and 32-35 ppt salinity

concentration.

Status of Natural Stock

The abalone species, Haliotis asinina is the largest of the tropical

abalone species. In 1993, the Philippines exported about 50,0531 kg of

processed abalone worth US $3.6 million to Japan, Taiwan, Hongkong,

Korea, Netherlands, France and Australia (NSO, 1993). Recent trends in

abalone fisheries around the world have shown increasing but then falling

as abalone stocks were overfished (Cook and Gordon, 2010). Illegal

exploitation of abalone has contributed to population crashes and often to

the complete decommercialization of abalone fishing industries (Wagey,

2014; Karpov et al., 2000; Gordon and Cook, 2004).

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The abalone industry in the Philippines, which solely depends on

harvesting natural stocks (mainly of the Donkey’s Ear Abalone Haliotis

asinina, began in 1971 with volume and total export values reaching more

than 400 tonnes and US$ 5 million in 1997, respectively (Maliao et al.,

2004). The commercial abalone catch in the Philippines increased from

122 metric tons (mt) in 1993 to 448 mt in 1996 but fell to 190 mt in 1998

(FAO, 2000). It stagnated to about 300 tonnes in 2000 onwards (Salayo

et al., 2020).

Palawan’s production of wild abalone, according to traders, has

drastically decreased from 100 metric tons in 1997 to 2 metric tons in

2011 (Gonzales, 2014). Palawan alone can produce 100 tons of abalone a

year, while in 2008, only 200 mt was exported from the country which

was less than half of the average annual production between 1900 and

2005 (Baobao and Roslinda, 2013). The decrease in production was

attributed to over harvest of the wild population of abalone and

destruction of their habitats (Gonzales, 2014).

Abalone (H. asinina) is number three in the priority list of marine

stock enhancement species for the Philippines (Gonzales, 2005). The

annual farm production of abalone in the country was 4 metric tons in

2010 then doubled in the year 2013 to 2014 (8 MT) which estimatedly
 11

increased to 10 MT in 2015 (Cook, 2014). Although mariculture

techniques have been developed (Capinpin, 2012) based on the biology of

abalones (Fermin et al., 2000; Capinpin, 2012), the bulk of the supply is

still derived from natural stocks.

Feeding Regime

A number of studies have reported the dietary value of various

macroalgae for growth of temperate abalone species (Sakai, 1962; Kikuchi

et al., 1967; Uki, 1981; Uki et al., 1986; Sato and Notoya, 1988; Mercer et

al., 1993; Stuart and Brown, 1994; Fleming, 1995) but few for tropical

species (Singhagraiwan, 1991). Tahil and Junio-Menez (1999) revealed

that 72% of the algal species in the gut contents of all size groups of

abalone are composed of red algae signifying that red algae is the suitable

diet for the production of abalone.

Based on the handbook of culture of abalone and other marine

gastropods by Chen (1989), Gracilaria sp. is the only algae used as feed

for abalone H. diversicolor supertexta because farmers find this alga

convenient to use. This alga can be purchased cheaply in bulk. Other

seaweed like Ulva are harvested only during summer and harvest is often

tedious and time consuming. Gracilaria was given to abalone every other

day by scattering it evenly in the pond. While feeding, crabs hiding in the
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fronds are removed to avoid predation. Feed conversion for Gracilaria is

quite poor, about 12:1, but this rate still satisfies farmers because feed

cost is at most 8% of the market price of abalone.

The study of Jumah et al. (2016) and Runham (1988) on the

effects of feeding rate and sexes to gonad growth of donkey ear abalone

H. asinina revealed that the gonad growth of H. asinina is highly

influenced feeding rate. Regardless of sex, those fed with ad libitum

macroalgae has a higher gonad bulk index after 15 to 30 days of rearing

suggesting that the 10% feeding rate is ideal to reduce the meat to gonad

ratio of grown abalone. This feeding scheme could reduce the growth

allocation to gonad and more yield of body meat could be recovered from

the species of H. asinina. SEAFDEC (1997) also reported that the rapidly

growing small juveniles measuring 16-20 mm have feeding rates of 35-

40% body weight. Feeding rate decreased to about 5-10% with bigger

abalone measuring more than 50 mm.

Haliotis asinina is also reported as distinct nocturnal feeder and

remained cryptic during daylight hours. The feeding activity was intense

from 1800 to 0200h, but slowed down a few hours before sunrise,

resulting in about 11h of feeding time within a 24-h cycle (Tahil and

Junio-Menez, 1999).
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Stocking Density

Survival of abalone depends on stocking density, size at stocking

and pond management, but this is usually more than 70% (SEAFDEC,

1997). Abalone reared in 40 x 40 x 20 cm net cages revealed the inverse

relationship between growth and stocking density of abalone. Growth and

survival were higher at lower stocking densities. The high density in the

cage makes it difficult for abalone at the bottom of the stack to move and

reach the food. This restricts the feeding rates so that food availability

becomes a limiting factor even though enough food was given.

The stocking density used for H. diversicolor supertexta abalone

served as the basis in rearing H. asinina. Stocking density is generally 150

to 250 per m2. It takes 6 months for juveniles to reach a market size of 6

cm shell length if stocked at 400 per m 2 but only 4 months if stocked at

200 per m2 (Chen, 1989). The study of Minh et al. (2010) on the growth

and survival of abalone, H. asinina, reared in suspended plastic cages at

different stocking densities suggested that abalone with an initial size

range of 10-11 mm in shell length should be stocked at a density of 60

pcs/cage for the first six months of the grow-out period using the

suspended plastic cages system. The study showed that the initial size

groups of 4-5, 7-8 and 10-11 mm attained a final size length of 34, 35 and
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37 mm, respectively. The tropical donkey-ear abalone H. asinina is

recommended to be stocked at densities from 40-60 pcs/cage to achieve a

better survival rate, for grow-out rearing in suspended plastic cages

measuring 30 × 40 × 30 cm (Minh et al., 2010). Another study done by

Fermin and Buen (2000) on feeding, growth and survival of abalone ( H.

asinina with 32 mm initial shell lengths) fed with G. bailinae reared at

different stocking densities (25, 50, 100 m-2) in suspended mesh cages in

flow-through tanks revealed that 50-100m -2 is recommended for tank

grow-out of H. asinina.

Harvest of Cultured Abalone

Taiwan has one of the most successful industries among abalone-

producing countries. Their study in growing H. diversicolor supertexta

abalone showed that abalone can be harvested four months after stocking

(for wild sub-adults) or after 6 months (for hatchery-produced juveniles).

Ponds are either emptied or the abalone farmer goes SCUBA diving in

large ponds. A diver can collect around 50 kg in 2 hours (Chen, 1989).

Yield of this species is usually 4.0 kg per m2 of abalone sized 20-30 g

each. However, market size varies depending on preference and season

but it is usually larger than 4 cm. The annual rate of return on investment
 15

ranges 50% to 160% depending on survival, duration of operation,

investment cost, and sale price (Chen, 1989).

Conceptual Framework of the Study

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES DEPENDENT VARIABLES

STOCKING DENSITIES
 80, 100 and 120 pcs of abalone  Growth (length/weight)
per 0.5mX0.5m cage = 160 m-2  Survival rate
200 m-2 and 240 m-2  Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR)
 Cost and Return Analysis
FEEDS
 G. oblongata
 G. Edulis
 Mixed algal species

MODERATING VARIABLES
Dissolved Oxygen
(DO)
Water pH
Salinity
Temperature
Transparency
Nitrate
Phosphate

Fig. 1. Paradigm showing the relationships of the independent,

dependent and moderating variables of the study.

The stocking densities and different macroalgae (G. oblongata and

G. edulis) are the independent variables while the growth, survival, feed

conversion ratio, feed conversion efficiency (FCE), profitability in terms of

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ROI and proximate composition of abalone were the dependent variables.

The moderating variables include the different water quality parameters

such as DO, water pH, salinity, temperature, water transparency, nitrate

and phosphate.

Hypotheses

The null hypotheses of the study were as follows:

1. There is no significant difference on the growth of H. asinina in

terms of shell length, shell width and body weight fed with G.

oblongata and G. edulis at different stocking densities. reared for

90 days.

2. There is no significant difference on the survival of H. asinina fed

with G. oblongata and G. edulis at different stocking densities

reared for 90 days.

3. There is no significant difference on the Feed Conversion Ratio

(FCR) of the abalone (H. asinina) reared in floating net cages at

different stocking densities and fed with G. oblongata and G. edulis

reared for 90 days.

 CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

Study Site

The rearing of the abalone was conducted in the coastal area of

Barangay San Roque, Socorro, Surigao del Norte geographically located at

9.654541° N and 125.924222° E. The area is known to have abundant

abalone, but overexploitation scrape them out. All the seaweeds used in

the study were taken from the wild available in the study site (Figure 2).

Fig. 2. Map of Socorro town showing the study site (above) and the
experimental set-up (below).
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Experimental Organism

A total of 2,700 spats of abalone with size range of 20 - 21 mm

shell length (SL) were used in this study. The spats were acquired from

Malimono, Surigao del Norte (Figure 3).

Fig. 3. The experimental organism.

Transportation, Acclimatization and Conditioning

The abalone collected by the fishers in the coastal area in

Malimono, Surigao del Norte were used in this study. The collection site

was about three hours travel toward the study area. Hence, transporting

of abalone was done early in the morning to minimize stress. The 2,700

spats were transported through putting them to 10 PVC pipes (270

abalone/pipe) that serve as their shelter or attachment. The pipe is 30 cm

length and 3 inches in diameter. The opening of the pipes were covered
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with net. The pipes with abalone were then put in a 40L Styrofoam for

transport.

Upon arrival at the study area, the abalone underwent

acclimatization procedure where the pipe with attached abalone was

slowly submerged in the basin half-filled of seawater of 32 ppt salinity for

about 30 minutes. This process enabled the animals to adopt the

prevailing water temperature in the study site. After acclimatization, the

abalone were released gradually to the cage for conditioning. Conditioning

lasted for seven days and during this period; the abalone were fed ad

libitum with red algae. Feeding was done once a day.

Experimental Design and Treatments

This study was a 3 x 3 factorial experiment with three stocking

densities (80, 100 and 120 per 50x50x50 cm cage) and three different

feeds (two species of macrolagae): G. oblongata and G. edulis and

combination of the two species of macroalgae at 50 percent ratio (Table

1). All the nine treatments were replicated three times and were arranged

in a Randomized Complete Block Design (Figure 4-5). The experiment

were done for 90 days.

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Table 1. Experimental treatments with three stocking density fed with

three kinds of feed.

Treatments Stocking Density Feed

1- Go160 80 G. oblongata

2- GoGe160 80 G. oblongata and G. edulis

3- Ge160 80 G. edulis

4- Go200 100 G. oblongata

5- GoGe200 100 G. oblongata and G. edulis

6- Ge200 100 G. edulis

7- Go240 120 G. oblongata

8- GoGe240 120 G. oblongata and G. edulis

9- Ge240 120 G. edulis

Fig. 4. Experimental lay-out of the study.

.
Feeds and Feeding Management
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The study used G. oblongata and G. edulis as feeds for the

abalone. The abalone were fed ad libitum with these macroalgae for

seven days for conditioning. Afterwards, they were fed at feeding rate of

40% body weight. Feeding rate decreased to about 10% when the

abalone attained the shell length of more than 50 mm. The seaweeds fed

were cut to small pieces using a knife. Feeding was done once a day at

5:00 PM. The wet weight of the seaweed was measured prior to feeding.

Each cage was provided with one piece of 30 cm long PVC gutter as

shelter. The proximate composition of the diets are shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Proximate composition of the diets

Crude Crude
Diet Crude fat Moisture Ash
protein fiber
G. oblongata 5.60% 8.62% 2.46% 13.95% 36.96%
G. edulis 3.03% 1.81% 3.44% 9.70% 69.78%

Stocking Density

The stocking densities of abalone for this study were: 80 pcs per

cage, 100 pcs per cage and 120 pcs per cage, equivalent to 160 m -2, 200

m-2 and 240 m-2.

Growth Monitoring
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A total of 1350 individuals of abalone (50 abalone per cage) or

50% of the cultured stocks were randomly collected and measured every

15 days for the monitoring of growth. Abalone were collected for length

and weight measurement at 07:00 AM using a digital caliper and weighing

scale, respectively. The collected abalone were blot-dried on paper towels

and then placed in a pre-tared transparent plastic container with water

using an electronic weighing scale (Figure 6). After weighing a group of

abalone, they were immediately returned to their respective rearing

cages. Consumption amounts of diet were recorded daily.

The growth in weight and length of the abalone were computed

using the formula of Chua and Teng (1978):

Weight Gain= Wt - Wo

Where; Wt = weight of the abalone at time (t)

Wo= initial weight of abalone

Length Gain=Lt - Lo

Where; Lt = Length of the abalone at time (t)

Lo= Length weight of abalone

Final weight-Initial weight

Specific Growth Rate =
Culture days
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Fig. 6. Monitoring of growth of abalone H. asinina.

Survival Monitoring

The survivals of the abalone were monitored every 15 days.

Survival rate were computed following the formula of Chua and Teng

(1978).

No-Nt
Survival Rate (%)= x 100
No

Where; Nt = Total number of abalone at a time (t)

No= Initial number of stocks

Feed Conversion Ratio

The Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) was computed using the

following formulas.

Total weight of feed given

FCR=
Total weight gain of abalone
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Total weight gain

FE (%)=
Total feed consumed

Cost and Return Analysis

The feasibility of abalone, H. asinina, fed with red macroalgae

reared at open-sea at different stocking were determined using several

formulae according to COREMAP II (2009) (described by Sososutiksno and

Gasperz, 2017) as following:

Total Investment = Fixed Investment + Operational Investment

Profit (P) = Total sales - Total expenses

Return of Investment (ROI) = Net Income/Total Investment x 100%

Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) = Gross Income/Total Cost

Payback Period of Capital = Total Investment/Net Income x production

period (month or year)

Water Quality Parameters

Prior to the conduct of the experiment, water samples for nitrate,

phosphate, salinity, DO, temperature, water transparency and pH were

determined. Water samples were collected in the study site every 15 days

throughout the study period. The samples collected at the water surface
 25

were placed in the 350 ml plastic bottles and then labelled accordingly.

Water temperature, transparency, pH, dissolved oxygen and salinity were

measured in situ using a thermometer, Seccki disk, pH meter, EcoScan DO

6 dissolved oxygen meter and refractometer, respectively (Figure 7), and

while nitrate and phosphate were analysed in the laboratory using the

Cadmium Reduction and Spectrophotometric Methods, respectively (Eaton

et al., 2005).

Fig. 7. Materials used for the determination of water pH, salinity and
temperature (from left to right).

Proximate Composition

The proximate composition of the seaweeds used as feeds was carried

out following the methods described in AOAC (1990).

Statistical Analysis

The collected data were analyzed on the General Linear Model (GLM)

or Multivariate Regression and significant differences among the means

 26

were calculated using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). P-value less than

0.05 was considered significant. If there is significant difference, Tukeys

test was used to point out which treatment is significantly different.