Kabeljou spawned at Henties

THE Sam Nujoma Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre (SANUMARC) announced recently that they have successfully spawned and reared silver kob (kabeljou) larvae to the juvenile stage.

Dr Larry Oellermann, the Commonwealth Mariculture Advisor and acting-Director of the Centre, noted that this was a breakthrough for Namibian mariculture.’This is not the first time silver kob larvae have been produced in Namibia’ he was quick to point out, ‘but it is the first time it has been done in controlled conditions, using domesticated brood stock, in a repeatable, scientific manner’.The daily growth of the larvae was monitored from hatching until metamorphosis, when the larvae transform into juvenile kob. This process occurred over a period of 25 to 30 days, during which time the larvae grew from about 1.5 mm to 30 mm. Over 600 photographs were taken of the larvae during this time, documenting all the developmental stages though which they passed.Dr. Oellermann estimates that they started with about 5 000 eggs, and ended up with about 300 kob juveniles.’This level of attrition is not uncommon for marine fish larvae, with heavy losses occurring each time they pass through a developmental stage,’ he explained. ‘Trying to improve their survival rate is where our research gets interesting.’The silver kob larval culture programme at SANUMARC is part of Unam lecturer and part time student, Martin Tjipute’s PhD project investigating the mariculture potential of the species.The project is sponsored by Kuiseb Fishing Enterprises.’This is exactly the kind of research project that we are looking for at SANUMARC’, Oellermann enthused. ‘Applied research motivated and supported by industry. SANUMARC is not just about research, but also developing novel ways in which to use our natural resources along the coast to generate income in a responsible and sustainable manner’.In the wild, the silver kob breeding season is already over, until it starts again in October.’Water temperature, photoperiod and an abundance of food are the most important stimuli to get kob in the mood to breed’, pointed out Tjipute. ‘And if we’ve got our brood stock programme right, we should be able to extend our domestic kob season to the end of April. We will be attempting to spawn the brood stock one last time for this season, over the next few weeks’.

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