Frequently gleaned holothurians in Camotes Islands, Central Philippines

Abstract

Camotes Islands is noted of its Camotes Sea as one of the fishing grounds in the Philippines. Extraction of the marine resources including holothurians in this fishing ground has been felt by the fishermen; hence, this study was conducted in order to find out its gleaning methods used, species gleaned, extraction rate and perception on the distribution of holothurians in the four municipalities of Camotes Islands which are San Francisco, Poro, Tudela and Pilar. Interview guide and actual field visits in the areas were used to gather the data. Results show that gleaning methods of gathering holothurians in Camotes Islands were handpicking, using bolo, water goggles, pointed wood, iron bars and by spears both in day and night operations. Frequently gleaned sea cucumber spe cies are Stichopus hermanni, Bohadschia paradoxa, Bohadschia marmorata, Stichopus horrens, Holothuria nobilis, Stichopus variegatus and Holothuria pulla which are also the species that were caught throughout the year.The size of the Holothurians gathered measures from 5-10 cm and the perceived distribution distance of gleaned holothuria in the site is 1-5 m. The amount of catch is 1/2 kilo per 1-2 hours gleaning time followed by "no catch" and the third is 0.51 to 1.0 kg and the gleaning frequency of holothurians in the entire Camotes Islands is 2-4 times a week.