OVERVIEW OF AN EXPERIMENTAL RELEASE METHOD OF THE SILVER SEA BREAM IN THE LAGOON AT ALBION

A programme to follow the movement pattern of marked sea bream in the lagoon at Albion was undertaken under Coastal Resources and Environment Conservation Project, with the assistance of JICA. Fish were marked by branding and were released in selected sites in the lagoon and off lagoon. Six batches with markings on different parts of the body were liberated from 1998 to 2000. Three areas of the lagoon were chosen for sampling purposes by seine nets. Marked sea bream were mostly captured from three areas. Information collected from amateur and net fishermen showed that marked fish were being caught in different area of the lagoon and the sea at Pointe Moyenne. The ecology of areas where marked sea bream had been captured should be studied. The release experiment has proved to be successful but trial on larger scale should be carried out to assess effectiveness of release. New method of marking should be tested and applied. Mauritius is the first country in the world where experiment on release of the Rhabdosargus sarba is undertaken. Keywords:Sea bream,marking,movementpattern,recapture,restocking of lagoon, fishermen communit