fisheries research and development in the mekong region · his country's new fisheries law...

River guards aid dolphin conservation

Rotating rice-shrimp culture in Viet Nam

Cambodian fisheries law highlights management

Breakthroughs in domesticating Krempf’s catfish

Volume 12, No. 3 ISSN 0859-290X December 2006

Fisheries Research and Development in the Mekong Region

INSIDE

Catch and Culture is published three times a year by the Mekong River Commission Secretariat in Vientaine, Lao PDRand distributed to over 650 subscribers around the world. Free email subscriptions to Catch and Culture are availablethrough the MRC website, www.mrcmekong.org For information on the cost of hard-copy subscriptions, contact theMRC's Documentation Centre by email to [email protected]

Contributions to Catch and Culture may be sent to [email protected]

© Mekong River Commission 2006

Editorial panel

Dr Chris Barlow, Fisheries Programme Manager

Dr Suchart Ingthamjitr, Fisheries Programme Officer

Khamtanh Vatthanatham, Fisheries Programme Officer

Virginia Addison, MRC Secretariat Communications Officer

Editor: Peter Starr

Design and cover illustration: Phannavanh Anoulack

All stories by Peter Starr unless otherwise noted.

December 2006 Catch and Culture Volume 12, No. 32

3

Edi tor ia l

E d i t o r i a l

The Mekong Dolphin is an icon of the region, symbolising the vitality and spirit of the MekongRiver, but unfortunately it is now only found in a few areas of the river and is considered anendangered species. Therefore it is good news that the Cambodian government is taking somefirm action on protecting these important cetaceans by introducing a river guard system, traininglocal people to become guardians of the dolphins living in their stretch of the river. This systemwhich has the backing of the many Cambodian government ministries and the provincialgovernors is a world first and should be applauded in its foresight. The dolphins are most at riskfrom entanglement in fishing gear and since the new policing measures have been introduced,and fishing sites have been restricted, the dolphin population in on the upswing.

Still in Cambodia, in this issue of Catch and Culture we are honoured to feature an article by H.E.Dr Chan Sarun, the Cambodian Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries who discusseshis country's new fisheries law which highlights management and conservation.

In Viet Nam farmers are taking new look at one of their most financially valuable aquacultureindustries – shrimp farming. Farmers are finding that this type of aquaculture is not as lucrativeas it used to be. In Soc Trang province in the Mekong Delta farmers are being encouraged toreturn to rotating their shrimp farming with rice cultivation. Working with the MRC FisheriesProgramme, farmers and local authorities are now trying to improve environmentally friendlyfarming systems which will be both sustainable and bring in suitable economic returns.

Aquaculture issues are also being addressed in Lao PDR where research institutes areexperimenting with domesticating the indigenous species Pangasius krempfi. This is both anissue for conservation of this migratory species and for the development of aquaculture. Theteam has succeeded in spawning the species using wild broodstock and is now looking forwardto the 2007 breeding season. Meanwhile Vietnamese scientists have succeeded in inducingspawning of Pangasius krempfi females raised in captivity.

In other news we look at research into the management of two species of carp and thedocumentation of deep pools around the Great Lake in Cambodia.

All of us at the Fisheries Programme hope you have enjoyed reading our newsletter during 2006and we look forward to bringing you the most interesting fisheries news in the region again in2007.

The Editors

Catch and Culture Volume 12, No. 3 December 2006


Cambodian river guards monitorsix dolphin-conservation zones

Cambodia is providing military training to dozens ofriver guards to monitor six dolphin-conservation zonesestablished along a 200 km stretch of the Mekongbetween Kratie and the Lao border. The training isbeing carried out under the Commission for MekongRiver Dolphin Conservation and Eco-tourismDevelopment set up by the Council of Ministers inearly 2006. A Korean Navy Seal diver and aCambodian Navy trainer conducted an initial 20-daylifesaving course for the guards in April and May. Asecond is scheduled for early 2007.

Dr Touch Seang Tana, the deputy president of theNational Tourism Authority who chairs thecommission, said authorities were taking a co-management approach to dolphin conservation. Halfof the 72 river guards recruited in 2006 are localvillagers from Kratie and Stung Treng provinces. Therest are policemen, soldiers, military policemen andfisheries officers stationed in the area. “It’s the firstriver guard service anywhere in the world,” Dr Tanasaid.

The establishment of the high-level commissionfollows growing tourist interest in the area and arecent series of Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaellabrevrostris) deaths, especially among young calvesand particularly between December 2005 andFebruary 2006.

Dr Tana said the commission had evidence that thedolphins were drowning after entangling themselves ina new type of gill net set by local fishermen. He alsoasserted that the public had been “misled” by claimsthat distant gold-mining operations on the KampiRiver in Mondulkiri province were responsible. TheKampi River flows into the main area for dolphin-viewing in Kratie, located about half an hour north ofthe provincial capital.

In Cambodia, permanent habitats of the Irrawaddydolphin are now limited to six areas along theMekong. In Kampi alone, Dr Tana said a survey inOctober 2006 indicated a population of 25 dolphins,up from only 17 individuals in 1997. The Kampipopulation is divided into three groups that feed

separately. Overall, about 130 dolphins are believedto inhabit Kampi, another two areas in Kratie andthree areas further upstream in Stung Treng.

In addition to the Mekong, the dolphins are also foundin the Makaham River in the Indonesian province ofEastern Kalimantan, the Ayeyawady River inMyanmar and shallow coastal waters betweenAustralia, India and the Philippines. In 2004, theWorld Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) estimated theAsian population at less than 1,000 individuals.

In Cambodia, up to seven river guards are stationedat 15 conservation posts along the Mekong. Each ofthe 12 main posts has a 4 m high platform and twoboats with engines – a patrol boat and a high-speedpursuit vessel. For night work, the main posts areequipped with infra-red binoculars and floodlights.Each also has a 30 m telecommunications antennawhich allows guards to communicate with each otherall the way up to the Lao border. “The fishermen arereally scared,” Dr Tana said, adding that three hadbeen jailed in September for electro-fishing.

C e t a c e a n s

The dolphin population in the Kampi River is increasing.

Locally-manned river guard service is a world first

5

Fishing restrictionsThe commission has delineated six dolphin-conservation zones where gillnet fishing is prohibited.Around each of these zones is a restricted-fishingzone where local villagers are allowed to use nets,traps and long lines with hooks. Gill-net fishing in therestricted-fishing zones is currently allowed but isexpected to be banned by the end of 2007. Therestricted-fishing zones also allow recreational fishingwith rods and licensed cage culture as well as watersports like rafting. Resort development is limited to athird zone outside the restricted-fishing zone.Agriculture and aquaculture are limited to a fourthzone outside the resort zone.

Kampi village itself has three conservation posts.Further upstream but still in Kratie province, thevillages of Koh Sam, Koh Phdao and Ksach Manakshare five posts and Koh Dambang village has two. InStrung Treng province, Thbong Khla commune hastwo posts, Siem Bork district has two and Chheu Tealvillage near the Lao border has one. The guards arepaid $20-40 a month.

The commission is governed by a five-member boardcomprising the chairman, the Kratie provincialgovernor, the first deputy governor of Stung Treng andsecretaries of state from the Ministry of Agriculture,

Forestry and Fisheries and the Ministry of Tourism.Other members of the commission include the policeand military police chiefs of the two provinces and agovernment lawyer along with representatives of theDepartment of Fisheries, the Ministry of Industry,Mines and Energy and the Social, Economic andCultural Observation Unit of the Council of Ministers.

At the provincial level, working groups headed bydeputy provincial governors oversee separateconservation and development branches in eachprovince. The conservation branches are in charge ofthe 15 conservation posts and the developmentbranches oversee tourism development. Thecommission is currently considering plans to build aport and expand the airport runway from 1,800 m to2,300 m to accommodate larger aircraft from SiemReap.

Wind and micro-hydro power are also beingconsidered, along with aquaculture. In addition toindigenous species, Dr Tana wants to promotefarming of red tilapia, a fast-growing hybrid species, tofeed the expanding numbers of tourists. The numberof visitors to Kampi alone jumped from 25,244 in 2004to 37,533 the following year and to 36,736 in the firstfive months of 2006. At that rate, the number oftourists visiting Kampi in 2006 will be equivalent to


C e t a c e a n s

Commission for Mekong River Dolphin Conservation and Ecotourism Development

C e t a c e a n s

6 December 2006 Catch and Culture Volume 12, No. 3

Irrawaddy dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) take atleast seven years to reach maturity by which stagethey are almost two metres long and weigh morethan 100 kg. In Cambodia, mating has beenobserved between January and February as well asbetween June and July. With a gestation period of10 months, calves born during the early part of thecommercial fishing season in late November andearly December are particularly vulnerable to gettingtangled in gill nets.

Newly-born offspring have been found to vary insize from five to 15 kg, depending on the size of themother. During the first four months of its life, aninfant calf relies entirely on its mother’s milk. Themother suckles her young with the assistance ofanother adult female. During this period, the mother

swims with the calf on her back as she hunts forfish. Rearing the offspring takes between 15 and 18months.

Source: Commission for Mekong River DolphinConservation and Eco-tourism Development

Orcaella brevirostrisFamily: Delphinidae (dolphins)English: Irrawaddy dolphinKhmer: Trey psautLao: Pa kaThai: Pla lomaVietnamese: Ca heoSize: Almost two metresStatus: Data deficient

about half the entire population of 150,000 living alongthe river between Kratie and the Lao border, a remotearea with limited access to health and education.

As alternatives to gill-net fishing, the commission ispromoting the production of environmentally-friendlyinsecticides from wood vinegar and the farming ofjatropha (Jatropha curcas), a plant whose seeds canbe used to make biodiesel. It is also promoting theproduction of local handicrafts, and solar energy as analternative to fuel wood

Dr Tana hopes the activities of the commission will bespelt out in 2007 in a royal decree that recognises the

dolphins under Cambodian law as part of thecountry’s natural heritage. In the meantime, theguards are protecting humans as well as dolphins.Guards at one post recently rescued 12 people from asinking vessel including a couple of pregnant womenand four children. Indeed, with characteristics likecommitment, devotion, perseverance and courage aspart of their job description, the commission’s criteriafor hiring guards reads more like a lifesaver’s manual.In the longer term, Dr Tana is hoping the guards canprovide regular ambulance services. “I want all theposts to be training centres,” the chairman said.

Irrawaddy dolphins

7

W a t e r m a n a g e m e n t


Rice returns as delta farmersreconsider stampede intoshrimp

After rushing into the lucrative but high-risk business of intensive shrimp farmingin recent years, some Vietnamese farmersare having second thoughts. In My Xuyen

district in Soc Trang province, farmers,local authorities and the MRC Fisheries

Programme are working together toimprove environmentally-friendly farming

systems that rotate rice and shrimpculture.

Three years ago, Phuc Chang Lao took a big gamble.For more than 10 years, the Vietnamese rice farmerhad been supplementing his modest income from awet-season rice crop by raising tiger shrimp (Penaeusmonodon) in the dry season that starts towards theend of each year. Over the previous decade, rotating

rice-shrimp culture had become common in Soc Trangand other coastal provinces of the Mekong Delta,traditional rice-growing areas where seasonalintrusions of brackish water make shrimp culturerelatively easy.

Between 1992 and 2002, Mr Lao had been earning upto eight million dong ($500) a year by converting hispaddy fields into shrimp ponds after the annual riceharvest. The rice was partly used for householdconsumption with the rest being sold. While rice wasnot particularly profitable, the returns from shrimpfarming were increasingly lucrative. Moreover, raisingshrimp was relatively easy compared with the labour-intensive work of growing rice.

So like thousands of other farmers in the MekongDelta, Mr Lao decided in 2003 to abandon rice and gofor intensive farming of shrimp instead, investing 20

A public billboard at a ferry crossing in My Xuyen district in Soc Trang province spells out rules for rotating rice and shrimp crops.Photo: Pham Tanh Lam



million dong in the new venture. The first year was ahuge a success, with a profit of 120 million dong froma bumper harvest of two crops which fetched morethan 200 million dong. But outbreaks of disease led tocrop failure in 2004. Mr Lao lost almost four milliondong that year and had no rice crop to fall back on. In2005, he barely managed to break even.

“I decided to switch back to rice-shrimp culture thisyear,” Mr Lao said after a recent training course onincome-management for farmers in Hoa Trunghamlet. Located in Hoa Tu Mot commune in MyXuyen district of Soc Trang province, the hamlet hasits own farmers cooperative, one of six taking part inthe second phase of a water-management projectunder the Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 2(RIA2) in Ho Chi Minh City. My Xuyen district hasbeen the focus of the MRC-funded project whichstarted in 2003. Under the second phase from 2006 to2008, commune and district officials are working withshrimp farmers in six cooperatives and five smallerclubs to manage water resources and diversify rurallivelihoods. In addition to improving householdproductivity and the local economy, the project aims tomake shrimp farming more environmentallysustainable in the district which is close to the estuarywhere the Bassac River flows into the South ChinaSea.

In some ways, Mr Lao and other Soc Trang farmerswho recklessly plunged into intensive shrimp farmingare lucky – they at least have the option of going backto the less lucrative but more sustainable system ofrotating rice and shrimp crops. In neighbouring BacLieu province, some farmers were so seduced by theallure of windfall earnings from shrimp a few yearsago that they tore down dykes that protected rice-growing areas from excessive intrusions of seawater.The shrimp industry boomed. But the soil in suchintensive shrimp-farming areas is now so salty that itis no longer suitable for growing rice. If shrimp cropsfail or prices collapse, adopting the My Xuyen modelof crop rotation is not even an option.

Environmental management and technical trainingEducating farmers is considered crucial in developinga sustainable model for shrimp farming in the MekongDelta. Officials from Vietnam’s Ministry of Fisheriessay that farmers are often lured into the business bythe typically high returns in the first year. As the wasteproducts (faeces and uneaten feed) from shrimp-culture residue accumulate over the years,subsequent crops tend to yield less. The temptation tostock ponds with large numbers of shrimp to gethigher returns may increase their susceptibility todisease as well as increase the amount of waste

generated which further shortens the life of the pond.

Aware of such problems in Taiwan and Thailand,ministry officials said they warned farmers severalyears ago about the potential pitfalls of intensivefarming. “They wanted to make easy money fromshrimp,” recalled Pham Ba Vu Tung, an officer withthe socio-economic and management division ofRIA2. “We told them about the high risks but theydidn’t believe us.”

Ministry guidelines for the Mekong Delta these daysrecommend stocking no more than three shrimp foreach square metre of the pond’s surface area. Theguidelines say that ponds using this “improvedextensive” system may last as long as 30 years. Forsemi-intensive farming, the ministry recommends nomore than seven individuals a square metre which isconsidered less sustainable, allowing ponds to beused for up to 20 years. Intensive farming with up to15 shrimp per square metre may be good for as littleas five years and is therefore not consideredsustainable. In neighbouring Bac Lieu province, some

Rice farming in Hoa Loi cooperative in Ngoc Dong commune.Photo: Pham Tanh Lam

9



farmers are said to be pushing the limits of intensiveshrimp culture by cramming their ponds with as manyas 30 individuals per square metre.

Regardless of the environmental costs, the economicbenefits of intensive farming start to fade if crop yieldsfail to match the increase in number of shrimpstocked. Moreover, to keep the water circulating inhighly-stocked ponds, farmers in the delta have toinvest in costly water-wheel systems. These may beone-off investments but entail additional recurringcosts as they are powered by diesel engines.

In preparing for the second phase of the project, theFisheries Management and Governance componentof the MRC Fisheries Programme acknowledged thatcoordinating water supplies posed challenges. Forexample, farmers who want to start stocking theirponds early in the season can damage the remainingrice crops if they bring brackish water into an area toosoon. Others who pump mud from their ponds ordrain them when disease breaks out risk polluting thewater supply and spreading diseases at the expenseof other shrimp farmers.

As part of the project, the cooperatives and farmersclubs taking part have received equipment to monitorlocal water quality. Farmers can now check the depth,transparency and temperature of the water as well asother variables like acidity, alkalinity, ammonia andoxygen levels. In addition to environmental training,the farmers are also offered classes to improve theirmanagement and technical skills.

Such training is in strong demand at the FarmersCooperative in Binh Hoa hamlet in Gia Hoacommune, which started working with the projectearlier this year. After three successive crop failuresresulting from low-quality seed and disease outbreaksbetween 1998 and 2000, local farmers set up aninformal support group in 2001. At the urging of thecommune people’s committee, 18 households set upthe cooperative in 2003.

The group now comprises 21 households with 22.4hectares of land devoted to rice and limited farming ofshrimp. The cooperative is divided into two smallergroups which each has its own set of water-monitoring equipment. One member operates a smallhatchery, buying seed from neighbouring Bac Lieuprovince and central Viet Nam. Monthly membershipfees of 20,000 dong have enabled the cooperative toaccumulate 12 million dong which, if necessary, canbe used to cushion losses arising from crop failures.

Nguyen Van Hai, the 31-year-old head of thecooperative, says only a few crops have failed so far.He remains committed to rotating between rice andthe improved extensive model of shrimp farming.When he’s not farming shrimp, Mr Hai raisesfreshwater fish like tilapia and carp with his annualrice crop. Rice yields 6.5 tonnes a hectare, of whichabout 30 percent is kept for household consumption.

Unlike many farmers, Mr Hai remains unimpressed bythe quick returns from intensive and even semi-intensive farming. “When I was younger, I often wentto look at models of intensive and semi-intensiveshrimp farming in other districts,” Mr Hai said. “But wecannot apply those models here as we’re too poor.We don’t have the money to make such high-riskinvestments.” Fisheries ministry officials are similarlycautious. “We don’t want to apply intensive culturehere,” one official said. “If we did, maybe we’d destroythe water environment.”

A tale of two provincesFor Luong Minh Quyet, deputy chairman of the MyXuyen District People’s Committee, the past 15 yearshave provided some important lessons for localfarmers who traditionally grew two crops of rice everyyear. They also raised fish and shrimp with the dry-season crop and grew cash crops like peanuts andginger. The establishment of a local shrimp hatcheryin 1990 made seed more widely available,encouraging farmers to switch one of the rice crops toshrimp every year. Over the years, shrimp farmingbecame more intensive.

“Three or four years ago, the farmers in Bac Lieuprovince started raising a lot of shrimp and makinglots of money. They didn’t care about rice any more.But their shrimp crops sometimes failed so wedecided to promote rotating rice-shrimp culture here,”Mr Quyet said. “Some farmers in Soc Trang still raisetwo crops of shrimp every year but not as many as inBac Lieu. Farmers in Soc Trang are now increasingrice production as they think their farms will fail if theytry to raise two shrimp crops every year.”

Estimates compiled by Pham Thanh Lam, head of theplanning and research division at RIA2, indicate thatthe surface area of fisheries is about 50,000 ha in SocTrang, barely 40 percent of the area in Bac Lieu. Ofthe total, an estimated 26,000 ha is devoted to limitedshrimp farming using the improved-extensive model.Semi-intensive farming accounts for an estimated13,000 ha and intensive farming for about 4,600 has.In Bac Lieu, the estimates indicate about 28,000 hafor improved-extensive culture and about 11,000 ha

10



for intensive culture (estimates for semi-intensiveculture weren’t available at the time of writing).

Mr Quyet, the deputy chairman of the people’scommittee, attributed the different paths foragricultural development in the two provinces todifferent regulatory approaches to shrimp farming.“The Soc Trang Province People’s Committee passedregulations more than 10 years ago. Bac Lieuprovince is more affected by brackish water so theirrules were optional,” he said. “Bac Lieu farmers didn’tfollow the rules. Soc Trang farmers did.”

To sustain the new model of rotating rice-shrimpculture in My Xuyen district, public billboards exhortlocal farmers to follow a few more rules like adheringto the correct stocking time in the shrimp season

which starts in January. If farmers want to raise fishinstead of growing rice after the shrimp harvest, theyare discouraged from using feed. Ponds should be atleast 60 centimetres deep and stocking density shouldbe limited to no more than five shrimp for each squaremetre. Farmers are also urged to avoid buying shrimpunless they’ve been tested for disease by recognisedexperimental stations. And to ensure food safety andsecurity, shrimp must not be treated with veterinarypharmaceuticals that have been outlawed in VietNam.

Shrimp stocking rate guidelines Type of culture Number Size at harvest Expected life of pond

Improved extensive 1 - 3/m2 40 - 70 g(15 - 25 shrimp/kg) 20 - 30 years

Semi-intensive 3 - 7/m2 30 - 50 g20 - 35 shrimp/kg 10 - 20 years

Intensive 7 - 15/m2 25 - 40 g25 - 40 shrimp/kg 5 - 10 years

Source: Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 2, Ho Chi Minh City

11Catch and Culture Volume 12, No. 3 December 2006

C a m b o d i a n l a w

Cambodia’s Minister for Agriculture,Forestry and Fisheries assesses the

historical context of the country’s newfisheries legislation

Before the French colonial period, Cambodia’s fishinggrounds were freehold land that was publicly held.There was no fisheries administration. Nor were thereany rules, regulations or laws governingmanagement. During the colonial period manyregulations were promulgated, starting with a royalregulation in 1872 that allowed fishing barragesacross water channels (see box on page 13).

Subsequent regulations included the classification offishing lots for public auction and definitions of sizesfor fishing gear. After the French colonial period,Cambodia established a code in 1956 for managingfreshwater fisheries with 11 chapters and 134 articles.Another code for managing marine fisheries wasformulated in 1958. These two codes remained ineffect until the 1970s and were completely discardedafter the genocidal Pol Pot regime seized power in1975.

After liberation in 1979, the fisheries sector wasrehabilitated by the Department of Fisheries whichwas re-established under the Ministry of Commerceand transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture in 1980.The Council of the People’s Revolutionary Party ofKampuchea decided the same year to maintain allfishing lots based on past locations. The Council alsoadopted a temporary policy in 1980 to allow fisherysolidarity groups to borrow funds from the nationalbank to invest in large-scale fisheries.

The Department of Fisheries of the People’s Republicof Kampuchea recognised that previous regulationshad little impact on sustainable resourcemanagement. In early 1981, it began studying theformulation of a new fisheries law with many hard-

working experts from the former government who hadpatiently remained behind.

In 1982, the Council of Ministers adopted a circulardealing with the revenues of state-owned fishing lots.The Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Financeissued guidelines for implementing the circular thesame month. In early 1984, the politburo decided thatthe exploitation of fishery resources by military fishingunits should be avoided starting with the 1984-85season. In August the same year, the Council ofMinisters decided to suspend such activities whichincluded fishing lots. A month later, the Council ofMinisters adopted a circular on the collection anddistribution of fishery products. Under a subsequentletter from the cabinet of the Council of Ministers in1986, state-owned enterprises in the fisheries sectorhad to be self-financing.

New Cambodian fisheries lawhighlights management andconservationBy Chan Sarun *

H.E. Dr Chan Sarun addresses the crowd at the National Fish Dayceremony in Sihanoukville on 1 July 2006. Photo: Mak Remissa

C a m b o d i a n l a w


President Heng Samrin signed the new Law onFisheries with six chapters and 44 articles on March9, 1987. The signing came two months after theMinistry of Agriculture adopted a decision defining therole, duty and organisation of the Department ofFisheries.

Over the next 12 years, the fisheries sectordeveloped rapidly and Cambodia became part of theregional and international community. To keep pacewith these changes, the Department of Fisheries setup a working group to reformulate the law. The WorldBank provided legal experts to help with the originaldraft which had 15 chapters and 169 articles by 1999.

In early 2000, the department set up an internal legalgroup in consultation with experts to check the draftwith the earlier fisheries codes and the 1987 law. Thedraft was examined four times in a process that wascompleted in March 2001, at which point the draft wassent for public consultations at five workshops.

In the intervening period, the Royal Government ofCambodia under the leadership of Prime MinisterSamdech Hun Sen initiated fishery reforms in 2000. Asub-decree reduced the area of fishing lots by 56.46percent, making available 538,522 ha for family-scalefisheries.

By early 2003, a revised draft of the new law wascompleted and sent to the Ministry of Agriculture,Forestry and Fisheries. Improved in line with a newforestry law, the revised draft had 17 chapters with125 articles. Following more improvements to fulfillentry requirements for the World Trade Organization(WTO), the ministry submitted the draft to the Councilof Ministers. Following examinations by the Social,Economic, and Cultural Observation Unit, the Ministryof Justice and various inter-ministerial meetings, theCouncil of Ministers adopted a newly-revised draftwith 17 chapters and 109 articles in January 2004.

In principle, the fisheries law aims to ensure long-termconservation and sustainable management of fisheryresources taking into account social, economic andenvironmental factors. All major activities having aserious impact on fisheries have to be assessed fortheir environmental and social impacts in consultationwith the public.

To strengthen management, the new fisheries lawprovides for a central administration that oversees

fisheries inspection and a decentralised structureused by the former Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime(1953 to 1970) as well as other countries in theregion.

Regarding the classification of fishing grounds anddevelopment of the sector, the law encourages thecreation and proper maintenance of conservationzones and strongly promotes the development ofaquaculture by all means including the annualNational Fish Day. All of these are key to ensuring thedevelopment of the fisheries sector.

The law ensures local community rights to use fisheryresources for traditional, religious and livelihoodpurposes through the establishment of communityfisheries. Management, development and user rightsensure the sustainability of the resources which areprovided by the state. The law also encouragesutmost efforts for the widespread promotion ofaquaculture development with simple procedures.

To stop illegal fishing, the law has strong provisionswith serious penalties against those who break thelaw including fisheries and other government officers.To investigate, prevent and counteract illegal activitiesand compile documents for submission to courts, theofficers of the fisheries administration are consideredas judicial fisheries police.

The law is also designed to be comprehensive andincludes a glossary of terms explaining the meaningsof important words.

To reach the goal of sustainable social and economicdevelopment, the nation needs a fisheries lawcovering all legal aspects. The law needs to serve thenation, especially people in local communities, reducepoverty and ensure sustainable development andgood governance under the government’s rectangularstrategy and Cambodia’s entry into the WTO. Thenew fisheries law is an effective tool for taking actionto manage and conserve fishery resources in asustainable manner for the next generation.

* H.E. Dr Chan Sarun is Cambodia’s Minister forAgriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The article is based onhis address to the National Assembly on 15 March, 2006.The assembly adopted the legislation on 30 March and HisMajesty King Norodom Sihamoni signed the new law on 21May. The Department of Fisheries published the originalKhmer-language address in June.

H i s t o r y


1872A royal regulation allows fishing barrages to partly crosswater channels. To let boats pass, the barrages maycross no more than one third of the channel.

1874A royal regulation prohibits the use fishing gear withmesh sizes smaller than 2.5 centimetres.

1899A decision by the general treasurer of French Indochinadefines procedures related to selling of marine fishinggrounds in Koh Kong province. The procedures apply forthree seasons.

1908A circular on the census and classification of fishinggrounds includes three royal regulations. The firstregulation defines two types of fishing grounds – thosewith exclusive fishing rights granted by the state to thehighest bidder and the grounds freely accessed by thosewho pay a fee to the state. The second and thirdregulations deals with taxes on fishing gear, ovens andfish-drying grounds.

1909A royal regulation amends one of the previous year’sregulations to define taxes on seine nets used to catchshark catfishes (Pangasiidae) on the Tonle Sap Lake.

1920-21A royal regulation on state-owned property managementin 1920 leads to the establishment of fishing lots in1921.

1923A royal regulation prohibits the collection, sale, andconsumption of marine turtle eggs.

1924The royal regulation of 1921 comes into force.

1925A royal regulation prohibits the capture of marine turtlesinhabiting islands in the Gulf of Thailand for a five-monthperiod ending in April 1926.

1929Fishing lots are reorganised with proper mapping. Sevenpercent of the fishing-lot areas are reserved for familyfishing.

1939A French presidential decree defines maritime territoryfor fishing grounds as extending 20 kilometres from the

coast at low tide and prohibits the entry of foreign fishingvessels with engines.

1940 A royal decree on freshwater fisheries managementdefines the boundaries of flooded forests and prohibitsforest clearance around the Tonle Sap Lake.

1944A decision by the general treasurer of French Indochinaregulates the use of fence traps in Cambodian maritimeterritory. The decision amends an earlier decision in1942.

1946-50A royal kram on fishing gear rights is passed in 1946. Aroyal decree in 1946, an amendment in 1949 and twomore decrees in 1950 provide for regulations on thetransport and export of fish from Cambodia. During thisperiod, a group of national fisheries experts isestablished as part of a national group of experts inwater resources, forestry and wildlife.

1952A declaration by the Ministry of the National Economyclassifies various types of processed fish products andprohibits the export of salted and fermented fish duringthe annual spawning season between August 1 andSeptember 30. A second declaration by the ministryrequires permits for transporting fishery resources.

1956Following independence in 1953, a royal kram adoptsthe Fisheries Code for the Management of FreshwaterFisheries with 11 chapters divided into 134 articles.

1957A royal decree defines Cambodia’s maritime territoryand continental shelf.

1958A royal kram adopts the Fisheries Code for theManagement of Marine Fisheries with six chaptersdivided into 48 articles.

1960A royal kram spins off the national group of fisheriesexperts to establish the Department of Fisheries. Undera separate royal decree, the Department is responsiblefor managing both freshwater and marine fisheries.

The summary is based on H.E. Dr Chan Sarun’saddress to the National Assembly on 15 March, 2006.

From colonial rule to early independence

G i a n t s p e c i e s


Many agencies have contributed toefforts to conserve giant fish speciesover the past six years. What happensnext is up to the four countries in the

Lower Mekong Basin.

In 2000, the inaugural meeting of the MRC’sTechnical Advisory Body for Fisheries Management(TAB) agreed that action should be taken to conservegiant fish species. But at the time, existing studies onwhich a conservation strategy for the giant speciescould be based were not available. So the MRC setup a working group to report to the TAB about theimportant habitats, migration, biology and life cyclesof the giant species, as well as the success orotherwise of releasing artificially-bred fingerlings intothe wild.

Based on the recommendations of the working group,the TAB identified three “flagship” species – theMekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas), thegiant barb (Catlocarpio siamensis) and Jullien’s barb(Probarbus jullieni). These species are indeed giantfishes. The Mekong giant catfish can grow to 3 mmetres and 300 kg; the giant barb to 3 m and 120 kg;and Jullien’s barb to 150 cm and 70 kg.

The designation of flagship species sought to raiseawareness and educate people about the importanceof maintaining the biodiversity of the fish fauna in theMekong.

In addition to identifying possible reasons for thegrowing rarity of the three species, the working grouphighlighted the need to cooperate with other sectorsto develop an adaptive or experimental system of

14

The current status of flagshipspecies

The Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas) is one of the three “flagship” species identified by the Technical Advisory Body’s working group.

By Naruepon Sukumasavin *


15

management. Such a system would entail creatingmodels, formulating and screening hypotheses,designing and carrying out experiments, andanalysing the results to identify why these species arebecoming increasingly rare. The process wouldinvolve refining management so that gaps in data andknowledge are identified in all stages of themanagement process.

The working group concluded that the Mekong giantcatfish seemed threatened by human activities.Conserving self-sustaining populations was thereforelikely to be part of the broader management of theaquatic resources of the Lower Mekong Basin. If anecosystem approach was taken, efforts to sustain wildpopulations of giant species would probably succeed– provided they were in collaboration with othersectors using the river. If such an approach failed,one further option may be to breed giant species incaptivity for possible future re-introduction into thewild (although this would address the symptoms butnot the causes of the problem).

Of the three species, only the Mekong giant catfish islisted as “critically endangered” by the WorldConservation Union (IUCN). Breeding grounds forthe species are not well known, although one locationis north of Chiang Khong in northern Thailand.Hatchery production from wild and captive broodstockhas allowed stocking in Thai reservoirs as well as inthe Mekong mainstream.

The giant barb, although not listed by the IUCN, isextremely rare above Khone Falls. It is more commonin Cambodia and Viet Nam, although large fish arenow rarely caught. Spawning grounds for the giantbarb are not known but they may be in the deep poolsin northern Cambodia.

Jullien’s barb is listed as endangered on the IUCNList of Endangered Animals. This species has severalknown spawning grounds. A recent publication by IanBaird highlights the dramatic decline in thepopulations of this species and the closely-relatedProbarbus labeamajor.

In Thailand, the Department of Fisheries has beenproducing fingerlings from wild broodstock of theMekong giant catfish since 1983 and from captivebroodstock since 2000 (see Catch and Culture,Volume 12, No. 1). Production of captive fingerlings in2006 is expected to reach about 400,000, twice thenumber produced a year earlier and a new record.Genetic studies are being carried out with ThaiDepartment of Fisheries and Tohoku University inJapan, as well as through the Network of AquacultureCentres in the Asia Pacific (NACA) and the DarwinInitiative.

Among other initiatives, the Cambodian Departmentof Fisheries has been carrying out a buy-and-releaseprogram for the Mekong giant catfish with the MRCand the World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF) since


Although the giant barb is not listed as “critically endangered” it is now extremely rare above Khone Falls.



2001. Thailand has also been working with the MRC,Kyoto University and the Mekong WetlandsBiodiversity Program (MWBP) on a tracking programfor captive fish and a larval study to determinespawning grounds. A programme to buy-out fishinggear used to catch the giant species in northernThailand was also launched in 2006 (see Catch andCulture, Volume 12, No. 1).

At the same time, the Mekong Giant CatfishConservation Working Group set up in 2005 seeks tobring relevant organisations together and exchangeinformation. The group is working towards a jointconservation strategy that includes nationalgovernments, regional agencies such as the MRCand NACA and international organisations like IUCN,WWF and FAO, academic institutions like ImperialCollege of London and Kasetsart University, as wellas the Darwin Initiative.

Population modelling for the Mekong giant catfish inThailand indicates that fishing for large specimens isless of a threat than previously thought. A moderatelevel of traditional fishing could be allowed – andmight also be beneficial for long-term monitoring andmaintaining public interest in the species. The impactof catching young specimens of less than one metreis not clear. But significant catches of juvenile fishcould have a big impact on the abundance of thespecies. Such fishing would be incidental and verydifficult to address.

The model also shows that the degradation ofhabitats probably didn’t play a major role in past

changes in giant catfish population, but it may do soin the future as human populations grow, economiesdevelop and natural resources are used. The biggestthreats are thought likely to come from navigationalimprovements and hydrological changes at spawninggrounds as well dams in tributaries blocking access tojuvenile habitats. The modification of spawninggrounds may be the most acute threat but cannot bedetected in adult populations for about 20 years.

As for the other two flagship species, Thailand hascarried out a genetic inventory for both the wild andhatchery populations of Jullien’s barb in addition todeveloping a broodstock management plan for thefish. For the giant barb, the Department of Fisheriesproduces and releases about 200,000 fingerlings ayear.

Protecting the giant fish species of the Mekong is acomplex problem involving many sectors. As a trans-boundary issue, it also requires the support andcooperation of agencies and stakeholders throughoutthe region. Initiatives to conserve these giant speciesare already underway. What happens next is up to thefour countries of the Lower Mekong Basin.

* Dr. Naruepon is the MRC Fisheries Programme’s nationalcoordinator in Thailand and also a member of the TechnicalSupport Group for the Technical Advisory Body for FisheriesManagement (TAB). This article is based on thepresentation he made to the Eighth Technical Symposiumon Mekong Fisheries in Ho Chi Minh City on 3 November.



17

A workshop at the Mekong FisheriesTechnical Symposium, November 2006,raised several ideas for management of

giant fish species in the Mekong

The Eighth Technical Symposium on MekongFisheries called for the development of a regionalresearch network to share data and knowledgeabout giant species. During a half-day workshop onmanaging such species, delegates also called forcountries to cooperate on issues such as breedingand hatchery technologies. The need for a researchnetwork and technological cooperation were amongseveral ideas identified during the workshop in HoChi Minh City on 3 November.

In a statement issued after the workshop, the MRCFisheries Programme strongly recommended thatthe Technical Advisory Body on FisheriesManagement (TAB) take up such themes in its workplan for 2007 to 2010. “The management of giantspecies is complex,” the statement said, noting that

much was still to be learnt about their biology andthat more data was needed. “Their management isalso a trans-boundary issue, requiring cooperationamong the four riparian countries. It will also needthe involvement and support of local fishingcommunities.”

Opened by TAB chairman Sam Nouv, deputydirector of Cambodia’s Fisheries Administration, theworkshop featured a presentation on the currentstatus of giant species including the results ofactions taken since 2002. It also included a paneldiscussion between TAB members whichhighlighted the importance of managing andconserving giant fish given their role as “flagshipspecies” symbolising the ecological health of theMekong. The discussion noted that giant speciesacted as an umbrella for other fish and thatprotecting them helps to protect many other fishspecies. TAB members also noted that managinggiant fish could help safeguard the food security ofrural communities and alleviate poverty as well.

Opportunities for management andconservation over the next four years

Pangasianodon gigasFamily: Pangasiidae (shark catfishes)English: Mekong giant catfishKhmer: Trey reachLao: Pa beukThai: Pla beukVietnamese: Ca tra dauSize: Up to 300 cmStatus: Critically endangered (IUCN

Red List), Appendix 1 (CITES)

Probarbus jullieni Family: Cyprinidae (minnows & carps)English: Jullien’s barbKhmer: TrawsakLao: Pa ern ta dengThai: Pla yee sok thongVietnamese: Ca tra so truongSize: Up to 165 cmStatus: Endangered (IUCN Red List),

Appendix 1 (CITES)

Catlocarpio siamensisFamily: Cyprinidae (minnows & carps)English: Giant barbKhmer: Kahao, kolreangLao: Pa ka ho, pa ka manThai: Pla ka ho, pla ka manVietnamese: Ca hoSize: Up to 300 cmStatus: Unlisted (IUCN Red List),

extremely rare above Khone Falls and larger fish also now rare in Cambodia and Viet Nam

D o m e s t i c a t i n g n e w s p e c i e s


Lao, Vietnamese breakthroughs indomesticating Krempf’s catfish

In the Khone Falls area in southern Lao PDR, about600 fence traps are used to catch Krempf’s catfish(Pangasius krempfi), known as pa suey hang leuangin Lao, as they migrate upstream in the rising watersof June and July. Thousands of fish are caught everyyear as strong waters flush fish into the traps as theylook for one of the few channels allowing them toswim past the falls. With support from the LivingAquatic Resource Research Centre (LARReC) inVientiane, researchers conducted initial trials forartificial reproduction in the area in 2004, usingbreeders caught at Nokassoum Island. Although thetrials failed, the experience was useful as it showedthat getting breeders to reproduce artificially posedtwo challenges.

The first was collecting the breeders and keepingthem alive. The fish had to be removed quickly fromthe traps and transferred to special tanks, either a

large-ring shaped tank or a small tank with a strongwater flow. If the fish were tethered in the river – atraditional practice for other species – they died withina few hours. Stocking the fish in cages also ended infatalities. After transfer to the large tank, limited andcareful handling using anaesthetics resulted in highsurvival rates after three weeks.

The second challenge was to induce ovulation. In thefirst trial, the team applied six different types ofstandard hormone treatments to 12 females. Twotreatments showed promising results in threeindividuals but none of the fish ovulated, probablybecause they were not sufficiently mature. Thefemales may also have been under stress.

In 2006, a second series of trials took place withhormonal implants injected into six females before asingle standard injection. The implants were pure

Occurring throughout the Lower MekongBasin as well as the rivers and coastal

waters of southern and eastern Viet Nam,Krempf's catfish (Pangasius krempfi) is avaluable species in fisheries between theLao-Cambodian border and the MekongDelta. Being one of the few freshwater

fishes of the lower basin that lives part ofits life in the South China Sea, it has been

compared to species of the salmonfamily. But unlike most salmonids, it is

not known where the fish spawns or whatsort of habitat it requires.

Under the Aquaculture of IndigenousMekong Fish Species (AIMS) component

of the MRC Fisheries Program, effortshave been underway to domesticate P.

krempfi since 2004. These efforts finallypaid off in mid-2006 with Lao researchersgetting mature wild breeders to reproduce

for the first time (see below). The Laotrials also succeeded with another

valuable species known as the sharp-nosed catfish (Pangasius concophilus). In

a separate breakthrough in October,Vietnamese researchers successfullyinduced spawning of Krempf's catfish

raised in captivity (see page 20).

Artificial reproduction succeeds in Lao trial ...

By Somphanh Phanousith, Philippe Cacot, Chaloun Souliyavong, Ti and Len Bun Long *


19

cholesterol or 85 percent cholesterol and 15 percentcellulose. It was found that they increased the size ofthe oocytes, the cells in the ovary that divide to formeggs, and probably raised the sensitivity to thesubsequent treatment. The only female which ovulatedreceived an implant of pure cholesterol followed by theinjection of LHRHA (Suprefact) and domperidone.Ovulation took place 12 hours after the last injection.Following the removal of about 40,000 eggs,fertilisation took place with diluted sperm. Incubationlasted about 30 hours and about half of the eggshatched on July 15. A similar method was used for theartificial reproduction of three sharp-nosed catfish(Pangasius conchophilus), another valuable species ofshark catfish. For this species, the implant wasreplaced by 3 or 6 injections of human chorionicgonadotropin at a low dose (500 IU/kg of body weightper day).

One observation from the second trial was that onlyabout a fifth of the females were in an advanced stageof sexual maturity. On the other hand, all the maleswere fully mature. The testes were not very big, butthey were developed and produced sperm that couldeasily be collected.

Having succeeded with the first reproduction ofKrempf’s catfish, the team is now looking forward tothe next breeding season in 2007. The season in 2006was a bit short – about three weeks instead of five tosix weeks because of the seasonally late rise in thewater level. Treatments need to be optimised withmore efficient implants and improved stocking andhandling during the resolving treatment. We need alsoto be prepared to manage a large amount of fishbreeders coming within a short period.

There is, however, a need for a permanent presenceon Nokassoum Island with tanks, a small laboratoryand simple accommodation for a few technicians andscientists. The project would be pleased tocollaborate with investors for mass production of seedand further collection of wild breeders to set up newbroodstock in captivity. At the same time, there is anurgent need to conserve the site and regulate fishingat the Khone Falls and even all along the migrationroutes of this important species.

The domestication of P. krempfi is an issue for boththe conservation of this migratory species and for thedevelopment of aquaculture. P. krempfi is euryhaline,capable of living in water with variable salinity.Therefore it could be suitable for aquaculture in eitherfresh or brackish water, similar to the commonly-cultured Asian sea bass (Lates calcarifer).

* Mr Phanousith is Head of the Aquaculture Unit at theLiving Aquatic Resources Research Center (LARReC) inVientiane while Dr Cacot is a scientist with the Lao programof CIRAD, the French Centre for International Cooperation inAgricultural Research for Development. Mr Charoune is an officer of the Provincial Agriculture andFisheries Office of Champassak province, Muang KhongDistrict. Mr Ti is a fisherman and staff member of theDepartment of Fisheries in Cambodia. Mr Len Bun Long isan MSc student from Can Tho University, Viet Nam. Thisarticle is based on their presentation to the Eighth TechnicalSymposium on Mekong Fisheries in Ho Chi Minh City inNovember.

A Lao fisherman with Krempf’s catfish in the Khone Falls area.




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Krempf’s catfish (Pangasius krempfi) is one of themost highly-prized species in the Mekong Delta.Reaching up to 80 centimetres, market prices forwhat’s locally known as ca bong lau can be up tothree times the price for ca tra, another species ofshark catfish that is widely farmed and exported fromthe delta. In 2005, scientists of the Research Institutefor Aquaculture No. 2 working under the Aquacultureof Indigenous Mekong Fish Species (AIMS)component, succeeded for the first time in keepingwild specimens alive in a cage (see Catch andCulture, Volume 12, No. 1). By mid-2006, about 50females larger than 2.5 kg were maturing.

“At that time, we working in the dark,” recalled TrinhQuoc Trong, the national director for AIMS in VietNam. The team planned to inject the same hormoneused to induce spawning in other shark catfishesfarmed in the delta – human chorionic gonadotropin, ahormone produced by the placenta during pregnancy .“But we didn’t know what hormone dosage to use orhow many injections to give or at what intervals,” headded.

The first attempt to induce spawning involved threehormone injections over a two-day period – the samedose given to ca tra. The experiment took place in avillage in Dong Thap province where the candidatefish were being kept in a two-cubic-metre hapa, a netenclosure suspended inside a cage in the river. “Thatwas a mistake,” Trong said. The fish were weak andcould not swim freely in such a small area which, theteam believed, made it difficult for the hormone to takeeffect. Moreover, it was found that the first spine of thepectoral fin of this species could easily get entangledin the net, increasing the chances of death.

For the second attempt a few weeks later, about 10fish were transferred from the cage to a couple oftanks at the new National Breeding Centre forSouthern Fresh Water Aquaculture in the nearby

province of Tien Giang. The fish were very healthyand received the same dose of hormones. “But wemade a handling mistake,” Trong said. “Every time weinjected a fish, we were also sampling for eggs. Thatwas too stressful for the fish.” Sampling the eggsrequired extra handling, which damaged the skin onthe caudal peduncle, and the resultant loss of themucous layer made the fish prone to infection. By theend of the third week, all four injected females weredead.

In the third attempt, the team decided to forget aboutegg sampling and release the fish immediately afterinjecting the hormone. Trong chose his most skilfulworker, telling him to be gentle with the fish and notgrab the area around the tail too hard. He alsodecided to change the dose to a series of injectionsover a week, the same technique used to inducespawning in Bocourt’s catfish (Pangasius bocourti),the other widely-farmed catfish in Viet Nam known asca basa. On the seventh day, Trong administered theprimary dose which was followed by a final injection in

... as Vietnamese induce spawning offemales raised in captivity

Scientists sampled for eggs when they injected the fishes.


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the evening.

On the eighth day, 5 October, the fish was “stripped” –a technique that involves manually pressing the bellyof the fish to force the eggs to be discharged from theovaries. “But initially we could not strip any eggs,”Trong said. “We left the fish for a few hours andobserved that the eggs were getting bigger. We gaveone more injection, the same as the final dose the daybefore. Eight hours later, she ovulated. That was asuccess because it was the first time we could make afemale ovulate. So by then, we knew that severalinjections over a week really did work.”

Fertilising the eggs was the next obstacle. The testesof the wild males caught in 2005 had barelydeveloped and efforts to obtain sperm wereunsuccessful. “I sacrificed four males but did not get adrop of sperm,” Trong said. Consequently, he optedfor frozen sperm from the tra species instead. “Theeggs started developing, but stopped after 10 hours.

The cryo-preserved sperm was inappropriate.”

In the fourth experiment a week later, the femalereceived the same dose as the third. But this time,Trong decided to use fresh sperm from a live tracatfish. It worked. The team stripped the fish twice in45-minutes intervals, gathering thousands of eggswhich were placed in incubators. Fertilisation rate forthe stripped eggs was about 25 percent, consideredvery successful. “We incubated the fertilised eggs untilthey successfully hatched to prove that they wereviable. Thereafter, because of strict Government ofViet Nam and international protocols againstproducing hybrid fish species, I personally supervisedthe destruction of all the hatchlings. I was saddenedby having to do this but I know that next season bygiving equal care when maturing the male P. krempfi,we will be the first to successfully produce P. krempfiseed through induced breeding”, Trong said.


AIMS staff in Cai Be

Trinh Quoc TrongPhoto: Joe Garrison

Dang Van TruongPhoto: Joe Garrison

Thi Thanh VinhPhoto: Joe Garrison

Le Trung DinhPhoto: Trinh Quoc Trong


M e k o n g D e l t a f i s h e r i e s

22

Fish-processing industry inMekong Delta more thandoubles output in four years

The first comprehensive snapshot offisheries in the Mekong Delta in Viet Namconfirms the importance of fisheries forfood security, employment and foreign

exchange.

The Mekong Delta’s fish-processing industry morethan doubled its output between 2000 and 2004 as aresult of the growth of aquaculture and rising marinecatches. A study of the delta by the Research Institutefor Aquaculture No. 2 (RIA2) also found that capturefisheries alone averaged 800,000 tonnes worth about$700 million a year and that fisheries overallemployed about 1.4 million people, mostly in theaquaculture sector.

A presentation* to the Eighth Technical Symposium onMekong Fisheries in Ho Chi Minh City in November2006 showed that production by Delta processingcompanies hit almost 506,000 tonnes in 2004, upfrom less than 236,000 tonnes in 2000. Frozen-fishprocessing by 43 companies accounted for aboutfour-fifths of total production in the latest year. Therest came from the processing of fish meal and otherproducts like fish sauce.

In freshwater aquaculture, annual catfish (primarilyPangasianodon hypophthalmus) production in fiveprovinces jumped from 106,000 tonnes to anestimated 287,000 over the four-year period. AnGiang province accounted for 61 percent of totalproduction followed by Can Tho and Dong Thap with15 percent each. Cage culture amounting to 1.1million cu m accounted for 40 percent of production in2004. Small-scale ponds covering 34,000 ha

accounted for another 40 percent while the remaining20 percent came from ponds devoted to intensiveculture which had a combined area of about 1,000 ha.Intensive ponds yielded an average of 170tonnes/ha/year.

Shrimp production (primarily Penaeus monodon) infarms in another eight provinces with brackish watersoared from 73,000 tonnes to an estimated 236,000tonnes over the four years. Ca Mau provinceacccounted for 37 percent of shrimp productionfollowed by Bac Lieu with 25 percent and Soc Trangwith 13 percent. The proportion of farms using moreintensive production techniques has grown from twopercent in 2000 to seven percent in 2004. Of themore than 520,000 ha devoted to shrimp farming in2004, 93 percent was devoted to extensive production(less than 500 kg/ha/year); semi-intensive farms(500-3000 kg/ha/crop) accounted for four percent, andintensive farms (greater than 3000 kg/ha/crop)accounted for three percent.

In capture fisheries, the marine catch rose from about600,000 tonnes in 2000 to more than 726,000 tonnesin 2004. The figures for the inland catch showed adecline, but these figures include only commercialfishing, and not the very large family and subsistencelevel catches. The importance of family level fishingis reflected in the number of fishing vessels operatingin inland waters, which increased from 70,000 boatsin 2000 to more than 90,000 in 2004. The sharpincrease reflected growing numbers of boats withoutengines.

In terms of value, shrimp accounted for between 36and 43 percent of the marine catch which ranged from

M e k o n g D e l t a f i s h e r i e s

23

$398 million in 2000 to $526 million in 2004.Freshwater prawns accounted for between 11 and 19percent of the inland catch which peaked at $70million in 2001.

The researchers found that aquaculture employedalmost 1.1 million people in the Delta. Capturefisheries employed a further 300,000, mostly unskilledlabourers although some people in the marinefisheries sector had been trained. By 2004, theVietnamese government had close to 800 officersworking in Delta fisheries. Aquaculture had 315officers, up from 277 four years earlier, while capturefisheries had 470, up from 356.

* Based on research by Nguyen Thanh Tung, PhamMai Phuong, Thieu Lu, Nguyen Minh Nien, TruongThanh Tuan, Do Quang Tien Vuong and Nguyen VanHao of the Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 2.



G e n e t i c s

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Research into genetic variation showsthat two similar species of carp need

separate management strategies

Among the hundreds of fish species that occur in theLower Mekong Basin, few generate as muchconfusion as a couple of small carps that may accountfor 30-50% of the region’s annual catch. The Siamesemud carp, Henicorhynchus siamensis, reaches a

maximum length of 20 centimetres and is a majorsource of protein in the basin, notably in Cambodiawhere it is used to make fermented fish paste. Thisspecies is almost identical to another small carp,Henicorhynchus lobatus, a similarly-important proteinsource that reaches 15 centimetres. Both species canbe considered “ecological keystone species” whosecontinued well being is vital to the whole ecosystem.

Scientists agree that both species belong to thecyprinid family of minnows and carps. The confusionarises over their classification in the Henicorhynchusgenus, which has been treated as a “junior synonym”of the Cirrhinus genus since a revision* in 1997. Thatsuggests that the two species are closely related tospecies like the small-scale river carp, Cirrhinusmicrolepis. But are they? And are they even closelyrelated to each other, as the Khmer, Lao, Thai and Vietnamese common names suggest (seepage 26).

In a presentation to the Eighth Technical Symposium

on Mekong Fisheries in Ho Chi Minh City inNovember, 2006, Australian geneticist David Hurwoodasserted that the two species displayed a “highdegree of divergence” not usually expected amongspecies within a genus. Whether the two speciesbelong together in the Cirrhinus genus is difficult todetermine as the genetic analysis indicated thatCirrhinus is a polyphyletic group, the biological termfor groupings of organisms derived from more thanone common ancestor. By definition, a genus ismonophyletic – species within it are believed to havea common ancestor and be more closely related toeach other than to species in other genera. So froman evolutionary point of view, the classification of thetwo species under the same genus may be historicallyinaccurate which is why future taxonomic revisionsare expected.

In the meantime, Dr Hurwood and colleagues fromQueensland University of Technology in Australia haveused a molecular approach to document the wildstock structure of the two species. Funded by theAustralian Centre for International AgriculturalResearch (ACIAR), the study is considered importantfor regional food security, especially among the ruralpoor. The study is also globally significant as the twospecies may account for one-half to one percent ofthe world’s combined marine and freshwater catchevery year.

Sampling to determine the geographic distribution andpatterns of genetic diversity within each species

Same same but different:Henicorhynchus lobatus andHenicorhynchus siamensis

H. siamensis

H. lobatus

G e n e t i c s

25

started in early 2004. The researchers used atechnique known as mitochondrial DNA analysis(mitochondria are the structures in cells responsiblefor the biochemical processes of respiration andenergy production). Dr Hurwood acknowledged thateven field biologists sometimes had troubledistinguishing the two species – some samplesidentified as one species turned out to be the otherand other samples were from neither species.

Based on spatial analysis of molecular variation, theresearchers found at least five independent stocks ofH. siamensis including four in the Lower MekongBasin (see map below). One covered an area abovethe Khone Falls including the Mun and SongkhramRivers. Two similar groups were found furtherupstream around Nong Kai and Chiang Saen and aseparate stock was found in the Mae Klong basin.Below the Khone Falls in Cambodia and Viet Nam,the study indicated at least one and possibly twoindependent stocks.

For the smaller species (H. lobatus), the researchersfound three stocks – one along the entire stretch ofthe Mekong from Viet Nam to northern Thailand,another in the Mun River and a third group in theChao Phraya basin (see map above right).Researchers also found one specimen from the mainMekong stock in the Chi River, the longest river inThailand which flows into the Mun. If the mainMekong stock is found to be more widespread in the

Mun River, Dr Hurwood said the researchers wouldlike to find out if the two stocks interbreed.

Since the two species are so genetically andecologically different, the study concludes thatseparate management strategies would be needed forongoing sustainable exploitation of the stocks. Furtherresearch is expected to focus on verifying whether ornot two independent stocks of H. simaensis existbelow the Khone Falls and investigating the possibilityof an “evolutionary significant unit” of H. lobatus in theMun River. And to avoid any more confusion out in thefield, the researchers also hope to develop agenetically-based identification system fordistinguishing cyprinid species.

* The most recent publication on fishes of the Mekong by arecognised taxonomist is “Fishes of Laos” by MauriceKottelat in 2001. He refers to both species asHenicorhynchus. A taxonomic revision by Tyson Roberts in1997 placed both species in the genus Cirrhinus. The MRChas previously referred to both species as Cirrhinus whilethe FishBase website lists them as Henicorhynchussiamensis and Cirrhinus lobatus.

Studies located at least five independent stocks of H. siamensis

Researchers also found three stocks of H. lobatus


G e n e t i c s


What does the Czech language have incommon with Khmer, Lao, Thai and

Vietnamese?

While biologists are still arguing about what to callthe two small carps that dominate the annual catchin the Lower Mekong Basin, ordinary people inCambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam knowwhat they’re talking about.

The two species are collectively known as trey rielin Khmer, pa soi in Lao, pla soi in Thai and ca linhin Vietnamese. To distinguish between the twospecies, all four languages add modifiers to the“core” common names. So the Siamese mud carp(Henicorhynchus siamensis) is known trey riel tobin Khmer, pa soi hua po in Lao, pla soi hua klom inThai and ca linh ong in Vietnamese. H. lobatus istrey riel ongkarm in Khmer, pa soi hua lam in Lao,pla soi lord in Thai and ca linh thuy in Vietnamese.

H. lobatus has no common name in any European

language except Czech where it is called ostroretkamekongska (“Mekong carp”). That’s consistent withostroretka siamska (“Siamese carp”) for H.siamensis. According to the FishBase website, theCzechs - who have been raising carp in ponds forcenturies – have common names for no fewer than48 cyprinid species. Most cover the Chondrostomagenus of carps found in Europe.

But the Czechs also have names for 11 species ofCirrhinus and three Henicorhynchus species as wellas the reba carp (Labeo ariza) from India and anobscure species (Gymnostomus horai) fromMyanmar. Known as ostroretka salvinska (“Salweencarp”) in Czech, this small carp is thought to occuronly in Inle Lake in the Salween River Basin. Likemany other cyprinids, it has no common name inEnglish or any other European language apart fromCzech. Given their contribution to the global fishcatch, maybe the Siamese and Mekong carpsdeserve better recognition.

A Czech connection

Lake Inle – home of the Czech-named stroretka salvinska (“Salween carp”), as seen by members of the MRC’s Techncial Advisory Body forFisheries Management team during a visit to Myanmar in November 2006. Photo: Wolf Hartmann


Cambodian researchers have documented thelocation of deep pools in the streams in the catchmentof the Great Lake in Cambodia. The surveys wereconducted by Chan Sokheng, Putrea Solyda andLieng Sopha of the Inland Fisheries Research andDevelopment Institute (IFReDI). Based on interviewswith people in 64 villages, they documented 123 deeppools in the Tonle Sap and its tributaries. Most of thepools have depths of between one and 7 m during thedry season although four are more than 15 m deep.The biggest pool was reported to cover an area ofalmost 15 ha.

Using photographs of nearly 200 fish speciescommonly found in Cambodia, villagers identified 185species from the deep pools around the Tonle Sap,including 156 in the Pursat River, 145 in the SangkerRiver and 136 in the Sen River. Fewer speciesinhabited deep pools in five other tributaries. Onehundred and sixty-eight species were recognised asliving in the deep pools in the lake itself. Most speciesspawned between May and August, although somespawned between January and April.

Among the nets used in deep-pool fisheries, villagers

identified both stationary and drifting gill nets as wellas cast and scoop nets. Other types of gear includehorizontal cylinder traps and long-handled scoopbaskets as well as hooks and lines.

Villagers identified fishing pressure and hydrologicalchanges as the two major threats to deep pools andtheir associated fish stocks in the Tonle Sap and itstributaries. Fishing pressure is the result of bothoverfishing and use of illegal gears. They also saiddeep pools are threatened by hydrological changescaused by dams and irrigation systems, as well ascollapsing riverbanks and increasing silt loads.Representatives of the communities considered theydid not have sufficient knowledge and resources toadequately manage the pools.

The identification of the pools – considered importantdry-season habitats for many fish species in the LowerMekong Basin – is part of a broader MRC project toproduce an atlas of deep pools in the region. Theproject, coordinated by Wisa Wisesjindawat from theMRC’s Information and Knowledge ManagementProgramme, is expected to be completed in 2007.

Documenting deep pools around the Great Lake in Cambodia

D e e p p o o l s

Source: Chan Sokheng, Putra Solyda and Lieng Sopha


F i s h e r i e s I n d e x

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Mekong FisheriesIndexThais help protect Cambodian fishery Bangkok Post, October 16, 2006

Thai villagers in Nakhon Phanom have lent their localwisdom to Cambodian villagers in Stung Treng,helping them learn about and protect their localfishery which has seen a drastic decline in fishspecies in recent years. The villagers met residents offour villages in Stung Treng, sharing theirmethodologies for conducting their own Thai Baanresearch and exchanging conservation lessons.Research and conservation efforts in Thailand helpedto raise Thai villagers’ awareness of environmentaland forest protection. The management of resourcesin the Songkhram River is a successful project of theMekong Wetlands Biodiversity and Sustainable UseProgramme (MWBP). It is a joint programme ofdevelopment agencies including the United NationsDevelopment Programme, the Mekong RiverCommission and the World Conservation Union. Itsresearch on identifying the number of fish in theSongkhram River was published last November.According to the findings, there are 120 fish speciesin the site. Five of them are classified as abundant,32 as rare, 80 as medium and two as endangered.The villagers believe excessive and illegal fishing toaccommodate commercial needs in other big citiessuch as Phnom Penh had resulted in the decline infish numbers.

Viet Nam fisheries to focus more on quality overquantityViet Nam News Service, 27 September 2006

The fisheries sector will prioritise quality over quantityin its 2010 to 2020 plan, according to Mr Nguyen Chu

Hoi, director of the Fisheries Planning and EconomicInstitute. “In developing fisheries we aim to meetdomestic as well as export demand, while firmlyupholding export turnover,” he said. “It is important topay attention to science technology applications,especially biological technology. Continuing to changethe business structure, balancing exploiting andbreeding, linking producing and processing,consumption and environment protection are otherpriorities. The targets by 2010 include: fisheries outputto increase an average of 3.8 per cent per year,export turnover at 10 per cent per year, and labourresource at three per cent annually. In the earlyfisheries development planning, we didn’t pay muchattention to inter-industries, while the resources ofeach region such as the Mekong or Red River Deltasare often shared with other economic industries.Therefore, in the future, the relevant agencies shouldco-operate to allow an agreement which will notcause conflict among concerned industries.”

At least 10 rare Irrawaddy dolphins born inCambodia, official reportsAgence France-Presse, 5 October 2006

At least 10 young Irrawaddy dolphins have beendiscovered in Cambodia, according to a governmentofficial, raising hopes the rare animal was beingpulled back from the brink of extinction. The calves,observed by fisheries officials, were most likely bornbetween May and July in the Mekong River not farfrom the Lao border, said Touch Seang Tana, whochairs a government commission established toprotect the dolphins. The commission was set upearlier this year after at least 12 dolphins died inJanuary and February, raising extinction fears.

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Conservationists estimate that fewer than 100Irrawaddy dolphins exist in the wild. But the officialsaid this number could be around 130 and that hehoped there would be as many as 170 within the nextfive years. He said since the beginning of the year, 66guards had been posted along the river to protect thedolphins. Only two dolphins had been found deadsince the commission was established. Starting nextyear, all fishing nets, which are the primary cause ofdolphin deaths, will be banned along the stretch ofMekong from the central town of Kratie to the LaoCambodian border.

Rare fish foundViet Nam Bridge, 21 November 2006

Biologists have recently found an Anh Vu fish, one ofthe rarest and most precious river fishes in Viet Nam,in the Xuan Son National Park in the northern midlandprovince of Phu Tho. The Anh Vu fish, known underthe scientific name of Semilabeo obscous, often livesin the bottom of the river and eats moss.

Seafood exports up 25% on last yearViet Nam News Agency, 24 November 2006

Seafood exports so far this year hit US$3.08 billion,an increase of 25 per cent over the same period in2005, according to the Ministry of Fisheries. TheNovember figure is above the Government’s $3 billionannual target. The ministry attributes the stronger-than-expected growth in exports to high prices forseafood in the world market. Shrimp prices areexpected to continue rising due to recovering exportsto the US and Japan, and to surging demand in thedomestic market during the wedding season fromSeptember to December and the Lunar New Year inFebruary. The ministry has also voiced concern aboutshrimp export restrictions. The Japanese authoritieshave proposed an investigation into shrimp and cuttlefish imports from Viet Nam, while Russian officialshave decided to first test and then allow imports intotheir market starting in early January. As a result, theMinistry of Fisheries is co-operating with the People’sCommittees in the Cuu Long (Mekong) River Delta

provinces to create and implement programmes toimprove industry safety and product quality.

Fish migrations show oceans warming upThe Nation, September 2006

A warm water Atlantic triple fin fish has, for the firsttime, been caught off the coast of Britain in anothersign of species migrating north as global temperaturesrise, experts said. The triple fin fish is usually found offthe coasts of Africa, South America and theMediterranean but was caught in the Bristol Channel.In August, a fisherman on the northeast coast ofEngland caught a large swordfish far away from itsnatural habitat in the Mediterranean and in Julyscientists reported a shoal of sunfish had beenspotted in the waters off Cornwall (in the south westof the country) despite normally being foundthousands of kilometres away.

Giant catfish dies after getting caught in netCambodia Daily, 30 November 2006

A critically endangered Mekong giant catfish caught inPhnom Penh died after getting accidentally tangled ina research facility net, officials at the Ministry ofAgriculture’s Fisheries Administration said. The 2.4 mlong, 184 kg fish was caught in a bagnet on the TonleSap river about 2 km upstream of the JapaneseFriendship Bridge, said Fisheries AdministrationDirector Mr Nao Thuok. It was the fifth giant catfishcaught by the administration this month and thesecond to die. Mr Nao Thuok added that thespecimen caught would be stuffed to it could bedisplayed on July 1 – National Fish Day.

Ministers back plan to tackle drought in MekongBasin MRC Press Release ,12 December 2006

Senior Government Ministers representing the fourMekong River Commission (MRC) member countriesmet in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam for the 13th Meetingof the MRC Council and discussed the launch of anew Drought Management Programme to be




implemented by the MRC in 2007. In addition to theflood issues that are being addressed by the MRC’sFlood Management and Mitigation Programme, MRCCouncil members from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailandand Viet Nam said that it was time the MRC took aleading role in drought management at a regionalscale as this would involve issues of transboundarywater management. Other business included thelaunch of Phase 2 of the Basin Development Plan(BDP2) and an extension to the Water UtilisationProgramme. BDP2 will see the preparation of a rollingIntegrated Water Resources Management-basedBasin Development Plan, the identification and shortlisting of a portfolio of programmes and projects,better assessment tools, an improved knowledgebase and enhanced capacity for planning andmediation. The WUP extension is primarily intended tobuild national capacity in the implementation of theDecision Support Framework (DSF) modellingsoftware and the technical guidelines for theProcedures for Maintenance of Flows on theMainstream and the Procedures for Water Quality aswell as continuing discussions on these guidelinesand maintaining the DSF applications. Apart from theDrought Management Programme the MRC is alsoundertaking formulation of a Hydropower Programme

and an Information Knowledge ManagementProgramme.


Published by the Mekong River Commission Secretariat

P.O. Box 6101, 184 Fa Ngoum Road, Unit 18, Ban Sithane Neua,Sikhottabong District, Vientiane 01000 Lao PDR

Phone: 856-21-263 263 Fax: 856-21-263 264Website: www.mrcmekong.org


Mekong River CommissionP.O.Box 6101, 184 Fa Ngoum Road, Unit 18, Ban Sithane Neua,

Sikhottabong District, Vientiane Lao PDRTelephone: (856) 21 263 263 Facsimile: (856) 21 263 264

E-mail: [email protected]: www.mrcmekong.org

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