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ITCZM Monograph No. 7 Series 200

CENT

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OPICAL

ECOSY

STEMS RESEARCH

(cenTER Aarhu

s)

Utilisation and Knowledge of Biodiversity in theRanong Biosphere Reserve, Thailand

Donald J. Macintosh, Elizabeth C. Ashton and Vinij Tansakul


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Utilisation and Knowledge of Biodiversityin the Ranong Biosphere Reserve, Thailand

Donald J. Macintosh, Elizabeth C. Ashton and Vinij Tansakul

The Integrated Tropical Coastal Zone Management atAIT is an area of specialization under the Schools ofEnvironment, Resources and Development and CivilEngineering. This interdisciplinary field aims to develophuman resources for coastal zone management in theAsia and the Pacific regions where the coastal areasencompass a diverse array of resources andecosystems with intense human activities.

The Centre for Tropical Ecosystems Research at AarhusUniversity, Denmark is one of the collaboratinginstitutions under the AIT/ITCZM-Danida CooperationProgramme.

ITCZM MONOGRAPH SERIES

This Monograph contains an elaboration of a twinningresearch project between AIT-ITCZM and Centre forTropical Ecosystems Research, Aarhus University-Denmark to reach the public.

Integrated Tropical Coastal Zone Management,School of Environment, Resources and Development,Asian Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 4, Klong Luang,Pathumthani 12120 Thailand.

Macintosh, D.J., Ashton, E.C. and V. Tansakul. 2002.Utilisation and Knowledge of Biodiversity in the RanongBiosphere Reserve, Thailand. ITCZM Monograph No.7, 30pp.

Cover Photographs: Typical mangrove dwellers of the Ranong Biosphere Reserve, who live by collecting,catching or rearing fish and shellfish in the mangrove waterways (Photos by: D. J. Macintosh, cenTER Aarhus).

Table of Contents

Executive Summary 3

Introduction 4

Study Site 4

Methodology 6

Mangrove Species Utilisation

in Ranong 7

1. Molluscan species 7

2. Crustacean species 11

3. Fish species 16

4. Mangrove plant species 20

Perceptions about mangrove

resources and the Ranong

Biosphere Reserve 20

Discussion 21

Recommendations 23

References 25

List of Abbreviations 26Photo Credits 26

Annex 1: Annotated list of

mangrove species utilised in

the Ranong Mangrove

Ecosystem 27

Acknowledgements 30

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Executive Summary

Mangrove biodiversity conservation and its sustainableutilisation by traditional coastal communities has become acentral aim of mangrove forest ecosystem management inThailand and many other Asian countries.

The Ranong Biosphere Reserve (RBR) on the Andaman SeaCoast of Southern Thailand was studied as a good example

of a recently protected coastal area, where research into theutilisation and knowledge of different species is needed toensure that conservation management in the reserve is notonly effective, but also sensitive and responsive to thetraditional ways of life of the local communities. The RBRincludes traditional communities of different ethnic/ religiousbackgrounds (Thai Buddhists, Thai Moslems, Sea Gypsiesand Chinese).

The main objective of this study was:

To record the utilisation and knowledge of mangrove-associated plant and animal species by local communities

living in and around the Ranong Biosphere Reserve.

Several hundred people directly utilise the natural resourcesof the Ranong Biosphere Reserve. The mangrove forestecosystem provides local people with a wide range of speciesand materials, ranging from mangrove wood products usedfor fuelwood (firewood and charcoal), fishing gear and housing,to fish, molluscs, crustaceans and other aquatic species whichare eaten or sold for income. Many species of molluscanshellfish (mainly oysters, mussels, cockles and clams) aregathered by hand, especially by women and children, whilemen are engaged mainly in fishing and crab collecting.

More than twenty molluscan species alone are taken fromthe Ranong Biosphere Reserve. Oyster collecting is mostimportant to the livelihoods of the poorest families who aresea gypsies living at a remote site on Koh Lao island. Fishingmethods range from primitive spear fishing (also done by thesea gypsies) to cast netting and the setting of barrier nets,long lines, baited traps and fixed V traps. Mud crabs (Scyllaolivacea) and small shrimp (Acetes), which are processedinto a shrimp paste (kapi) as a cottage industry, are thecrustacean species most identifiable with the mangroves, aswell as being very important in the local economy. There isalso a high level of exploitation of mangrove sesarmid crabsfor export to Bangkok as salted crab.

Groupers (pla kaow) are the single most valuable fish groupassociated with the Ranong mangroves. Grouper fingerlingsare trapped in cages for sale to the owners of floating fishcages, who rear the fish to marketable size to supply theexport market for live marine fish. Many fisher families nowhave their own cages and on-rear grouper fingerlings and otherspecies as a supplementary occupation to fishing/collecting. Schoolchildren visiting Ranong Biosphere Reserve

Aquaculture development has great potential to benefit lofisher families who are faced with declining catches ffishing. Mud crab culture to produce soft shell crab and mcrab products is also expanding rapidly in Ranong, whilefirst mussel farm in the RBR started recently. However, sdevelopments in aquaculture need to be carefully controto avoid competition between wealthy investors from outthe RBR and the local communities. Water pollution

aquatic disease problems are other potential riskaquaculture development continues to be unregulated.

Although there is an effective regulation banning the cutof mangrove trees in the RBR, the aquatic biodiversity beloto a common pool open to many competing interests. This no resource allocation and where regulations do exist (the ban on motorised push net fishing) there is no enforcemExclusion of non-traditional users of the mangrove ecosysis not possible in practice and there are no incentiveconserve or protect aquatic resources.

Local people still have little understanding about the objectof the RBR and have so far not been involved in

management. The local people within the RBR need tobetter informed about the mangrove forest, its resources its ecological and economic benefits. They must be maware of the permitted and non-permitted activities in the Rand the reasons for these and other environmental regulatio

A co-management approach is needed which can strengtcooperation between the government agencies involved

the RBR, and the local people. With greatercooperat

some forms of Stewardship may also be possible to givelocal communities a stronger feeling of ownership responsibility in the conservation management of

mangrove ecosystem they depend on for their livelihood


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Introduction

The Ranong Biosphere Reserve (RBR) was created in 1997as the fourth Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Reserve inThailand, but the first to include coastal habitats. The RBRcovers 30,000 ha of mangrove forest and associated waterwayswithin the largest single area of mangroves remaining inThailand. The mangroves have conservation forest status under

the jurisdiction of the Royal Forest Department (RFD).The RFD manages the RBR and is currently rehabilitatingthe mangrove forest after many decades of destructiveexploitation for charcoal-making, tin-mining and shrimp farming(Macintosh et al., 2002). The restoration and conservation ofmangrove biodiversity and habitat for fish and wildlife are keyobjectives of the RBR, but another fundamental concept ofthe MAB Programme is that management should also includelocal community participation, with tangible benefits to thelocal communities, these being heavily dependent on fishingand other natural resources. Thus, the provincial authoritiesand the RBR recognise that the local people should still be

permitted to utilise the mangroves, provided this is done in atraditional and non-destructive way.

ObjectivesThe concept of mangrove biodiversity protection andrestoration, and its sustainable utilisation by traditional coastalcommunities, are central to the management objectives for

the RBR, and other environmental management efforts involmangrove forests in Thailand. Thus, there is a strong neestudy the utilisation and knowledge of different speciesensure that conservation management in the reservsensitive and responsive to their traditional ways of life.

This study has two main research objectives:1 To record the utilisation and knowledge of mangro

associated plant and animal species by local communliving in and around the Ranong Biosphere Reserve.

2 To use the knowledge gained from this research proto promote the education and training functions of the Rinvolving schoolchildren, students, the local communities the public.

Study Site

Ranong Province (9O15N to 10O50N and 98O10E to 99O0is situated on the southwest coast of Thailand about 568south of Bangkok. Ranong Province borders the AndamSea and Myanmar to the west and the Thai ProvinceChumphon to the North, Surat Thani to the East and PhNga to the South (Figure 1). Ranong Province is diviadministratively into four Amphoes (Districts): Amphoe MuRanong, Kraburi, Kapoe and La-un. The Ranong BiosphReserve is in Amphoe Muang Ranong; the location ofBiosphere Reserve is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Map of Ranong Province and the location of the Ranong Biosphere Reserve

Phang Nga

Circled area is theRanong Biosphere

Reserve (RBR)


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The climate in Ranong Province is a humid tropical one.Ranong has the highest rainfall in Thailand with an averageannual rainfall of 4,200 mm (based on 45 years data). Thearea has two monsoon seasons. The Southwest monsoonfrom May to mid-October is the wet season, followed by aNortheast monsoon dry season from November to February.August is generally the wettest month (average rainfall 820mm) and January the driest (average 19 mm). The tidal

regime along the Andaman Sea is predominantly semi-diurnal, with a mean tidal range at the mouth of Klong Ngaoof 2.5m and a maximum spring tidal range of 4.4m(Macintosh et al., 1991).

Figure 2: Map of Ranong Biosphere Reserve showinglocation of villages within the reserve.

Local communities

There are a number of villages located within and arothe Ranong Biosphere Reserve (RBR) which show varylevels of dependence on mangrove resources from lowvery high (Figure 2; Table 1). Four fishing villacommunities live within the mangrove forest in the buand core zones of the RBR. These are a Thai Buddvillage at Ban Hat Sai Khao at the mouth of the m

estuary (Klong Ngao); a Chinese community at Koh Ka Thai Moslem community at Ban Koh Lao; and a grouSea Gypsies at Ban Koh Lao Nok. These communistill depend heavily on mangrove resources for t

subsistence, especially fish, shrimp, crabs and mollu

Table 1: Socio-economic data for the villages in and around the Ranong Biosphere Reserve (RBR)

egalliV

)naBooM(

noitalupoP

)0002ni(noigileR sutatSRBR

noecnednepeD

secruoserevorgnam

oahKiaStaH 052~ tsihdduB enozreffuB hgiHyreV

oaLhoK 504,%09milsuM

%01tsihdduBenozreffuB hgiHyreV

koNoaLhoK 032 enoN enozreffuB hgiHyreV

maKhoK 002~ esenihC enozeroC hgiH

oagNgnuhT 389 tsihdduB edistuO woL

oagN 3731 tsihdduB edistuO muideM

gnahCahT 6291 milsuM edistuO hgiH

gnaLnaB 885 milsuM enoznoitisnarT hgiHyreV

maDiaStaH 216,milsuMtsihdduB

enoznoitisnarT hgiH

Legend:

Sea gypsy community

Village

MFRC = Mangrove Forest Research Center


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The main activities of the people in Ban Koh Lao and BanHat Sai Khao are mechanised push net fishing, fish cageculture and shrimp paste processing. The main activitiesat Ban Koh Lao Nok are oyster collecting, spear fishingand push net fishing by hand. The inhabitants of Ban KohKam are mainly offshore fishermen (there is also somefish cage culture). Ban Koh Lao has 50 rai (about 8 Ha) ofcommunity forest, to which the villagers have the sole right

of utilisation of the mangroves. They have permission tocut trees as long as they replant after cutting. Thegovernment also gives them support with training activitiesand financial provision in the form of funds and loans. Incontrast, the sea gypsies at Ban Koh Lao Nok on the otherside of the island are not recognised by the governmentand have no settlement certificates.

Five villages, namely Ban Thung Ngao, Ban Ngao, BanTha Chang, Ban Lang and Ban Hat Sai Dam are located inTambon (Sub-District) Ngao, which is in the RBR transitionzone around the RBR (Figure 3). On average 45% of thepopulation of these villages are engaged in fisheries, 35%

in agriculture and the remaining 20% are in other forms ofemployment (Tambon Ngao Office, pers. comm.). Theresidents of Ban Tha Chang, Ban Lang and Ban Hat SaiDam are more heavily dependent on mangrove resourcesthan the people living in the other two villages. Theirdependence on mangroves is related to their ease of accessto the mangroves and their low economic status. Whereasall the households in Ban Thung Ngao and Ban Ngao haveelectricity and tap water, only some of the households in

Ban Tha Chang and Ban Lang have these amenities, wBan Hat Sai Dam has no electricity or tap water beca

it is on an island far from other infrastructure.

Methodology

The local people were interviewed about their use

biodiversity at various locations in Klong Ngao (FigureExamples of the local biodiversity were collected photographed. Following this initial field visit a questionnwas prepared (see Box 1) and this was used dursubsequent interviews with local fishermen to gainunderstanding of their activities, the species utiliseRanong, the price and marketing details of the produand the villagers perceptions of the mangrove resourand the RBR. Additional information was obtained fkey informants, including the Poo Yai Ban (VillHeadman) and local officials.

Information on the species exploited and their soeconomic importance was gained through interviews wthe local fishermen following the questionnaire structprovided in Box 1. This information is discussed presented below by species and activity, ranging fsubsistence collecting to fishing to aquaculture. A fulof the mangrove species utilised in Ranong by the locommunities is shown in Annex 1.

Figure 3: Map of Tambon Ngao, Ranong

Legend:

Moo 1 = Ban Thung Ngao, Moo 2 = Ban Ngao, Moo 3 = Ban Tha Chang, Moo 4 = Ban Lang and Moo 5 = Ban HSai Dam.


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Figure 4: One of the research team (Mr. Vinij Tansakul)interviews a woman from Ban Lang collecting cockles atlow tide in Klong Ngao

Box 1: Questionnaire structure

Location (Field site or village) and person(s) interviewed

Habitat description as a means of locating the site, pldescribing tidal, soil and mangrove features. Reference a map location if possible. (How closely associated is eac

activity with the mangroves e.g. in forest, in water channeor coastal?).

Activity description categories

Collecting by handFishing GearAquacultureOther (e.g. cutting wood)

Species involvedFor each species take a photograph and a sample, anrecord Thai name(s), other name(s).

Tools/Equipment descriptionCollecting equipment (e.g. a small hammer for oystersFishing equipment (type and size of gear, etc.).

How is the activity carried out?Number of days per month (relate to the semi lunar cycleNumber of people involved (define by location or village)Duration of the activity (especially for aquaculture)?

Harvest and production details?

Descriptions of the products (number or weight or size what is collected/produced/reared)?

Price and marketing details

Selling price (from primary producer)?From Middleman?Restaurant price?Use and how marketed (e.g. as food or medicine, in markor restaurant)?

Final destination of product eg. Ranong, Phuket, Bangkok

Gender aspectsDoes the activity involve men, women or children particular?

Local Perception of the resourceIs it increasing, stable, decreasing?Any other historical information (ask old people especially

Perception of the RBRTheir knowledge of the RBR and its objectives?How should the RBR help the local communities?What are their main concerns (e.g. education, health) anlimitations (financial)?What do they think the mangrove is important for?

Mangrove Species Utilisation inRanong

1. Molluscan species

Over twenty molluscan species (Nateewathana, 1995) aretaken from the Ranong Biosphere Reserve (Annex 1). Manyof the molluscs are collected from the mudflats at low tide allyear round, whereas squid are caught only in certain seasonsby trap. At present aquaculture farming of molluscs is on avery small scale. There is only one mussel farm and a few ofthe fish farms also culture small quantities of mussels oroysters attached to ropes. Results from the first harvest ofmussels at the new farm established in 2001 will be veryimportant to the future of mollusc culture in this area.

1.1 Subsistence collecting

1.1.1 Cockles

Hoy kraeng is the general Thai name for cockles of the genusAnadara. There are two species of cockle that are collectedby hand in Klong Ngao,Anadara granosa(hoy kraeng malay)andAnadaracf. troscheli(hoy kraeng man). Hoy kraeng manis the common larger, more triangular species. The term hoylak is also used to describe cockles because it means handcollection using a raking tool and this is how the cockles areharvested (Figure 5).

Women and children collect seed cockles on the sandy

mudflat island opposite the former tin mining area in KlongNgao. There are no mangroves on this island, except a fewtrees at the upstream end. They collect the cockles at lowtide by raking the sand/mud and locating the cockles by hand.The cockles are stored in a mesh bag slung around theirshoulders or hips. They usually collect about 4-5kg of cockles

a day; but the interviewed family was collecting 10 kg/dayas

an order for a middleman. They sell the cockle seed at THB

15/kg.


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Figure 6:Cockle seed from Klong Ngao, to be soldfor on-growing

Figure 7:The two common oyster species exploited

local people in the Klong Ngao and Koh Lao areas

The small oysters (hoy joh), are collected from the mudat low tide by the women and children of Ban Koh Lao and Ban Lang. The sea gypsies collect hoy joh frommudflats around their village every three daysapproximately 6 to 7 times a month. The ladies from BLang collect on the sandy mudflats with sparse mangrvegetation opposite the tin mining site. One old lady fBan Lang claimed that she collected oysters 10 days evmonth, even when raining, and had been doing so for ab

35 years! Another lady from Ban Lang collected oysonly three days per month.

The sea gypsies de-shell (shuck) the oysters usingiron tool that is sharp at one end and heavy and blunthe other (Figure 8). Only women and children do collecting and processing. The shucked oysters are sat Ranong market in the evening. A cup of oysters is sfor THB 10; this is equivalent to about THB 50-70

Figure 5:A simple hand tool used to gather cockles

In Ban Lang there is a cockle collector (middleman) whosupplies cockle seed to a cockle farm in Kapoe District.The cockle collector is a Moslem woman. She buys thesmall cockle seed from the local fishers at THB 16/kg.One fisher can usually collect about 8-10 kg/day of cockles

but sometimes as much as 20 kg/day. One kg of cockleseed has 30-40 cockles with a size of 1.5-2.0 cm (Figure6). The cockle seed can survive for 3-4 days in a bucket ofseawater after collection. Once the desired quantity hasbeen gathered (about 200-250 kg, which takes about 2-3days to collect) the Ban Lang dealer sells the cockle seedto a second middleman at THB 18/kg. In the past, whenthere were no cockle farms to sell to, the small cockleseed were simply thrown away because they were of novalue. However, now that there are several cockle farms inKapoe District, cockle seed are in high demand.

The Ban Lang middleman also buys the larger cockles of

edible size. She sells these to markets and restaurants ata price of THB 13/kg. The price of the large cockles in themarket is THB 30/kg, but previously (year 2000) they

1.1.2 Oysters

There are a number of species of oyster that are collecby hand in Klong Ngao. Hoy nang rom is the general Tname for oysters. The term hoy joh (= hand collecwith a hammer tool) usually refers to the smallest spec(Crassostrea commercialis). There are two larger oyspecies, hoy ta krom, Crassostrea lugubris, which hablack scar (Figure 7, left), and C. belcheri, which hawhite scar (Figure 7, right).

reached THB 80/kg because very few were availableassessment has been made of the cockle resourceRanong, but it is known from similar collecting areaMalaysia that there can be large annual fluctuationrecruitment and therefore in the supply and demand

cockles (Macintosh, 1982).


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Figure 8:A young girl at Koh Lao Nok extracting meat

from oysters (in basket at right)

1.1.3 Mussels

Hoy kapong are small mussels that occur on the seawardedge of the mangrove. The species has not been confirmedbut it is most likely to be Modiolus metcalfei. The speciesArcuatula arcuatulais probably also present. The mussels

are collected by hand from the mudflats at low tide andused as fresh food for fish, shrimp and ducks. The smmussels are sold for THB 2-3/kg. The larger-sized musfor human consumption are sold for THB 5/kg.

1.1.4 Clams

There are various species of clams collected from the sa

mudflats opposite Hat Sai Khao harbour (Annex 1). Peofrom the surrounding villages and even from other distcome to collect here at low tide. At weekends duringdry season up to 100 people can be seen gathering cla(hoy). One collector can earn an income of about T100-120/day (from 20-25 kg of clams collected per da

Eight people (four men and four women) from Tambon Ncollect Meretrix lusoria(hoy wan) from sandflats oppoHat Sai Khao harbour for a hobby. They are loschoolteachers, school-maids, drivers or clerks from NgThe substratum is sandy and stoney. They collect wan at low tide by screening the sand and stones fr

under water at about 50-60 cm depth using a sievecoconut shell is used to sort the clams from the stonThe clams are then put in a net bag carried on the shoulIn one day one man can collect about 35 kg. One lcollects about 5 kg in 2 hours. They sell the clams atlocal Ngao market for THB 5/kg. Dried hoi wan are soRanong market for THB 90/kg. Some of the clams tcook at home in various ways (dry, boil, fry) for food. Tcome to collect on about 10 days per month, but season is only four months per year (DecembeFebruary). The local teacher said that five years ago tcollected about the same amount of hoy wan as prese

because hoy wan has a short life cycle. In contrast, local fishermen around mangrove areas prefer to coloysters and cockles rather than hoy wan due to the formhigher selling price.

One young lady from Ban Ngao collects about two bof hoy wan and other clams per day equivalent to T300. She explained that she comes to the site every and will do so until they have all gone. The mudflats nto the local Hat Sai Khao harbour used to have clamsnow after five months of collecting there are none leftshe has moved to another collection area on the mudfopposite the harbour. She collects on about 14 days

month and on the other days she goes shopping or stat home.

Hoy khao are similar to hoy wan but are larger and a whyellow colour. They are sold at THB 10/kg. Hoy lord (Sostrictus, razor clam) is a mollusc found on sandy mudfin front of the mangrove zone that are collected by putlime down into the hole it uses for respiration; this cauthe animal to come to the surface. Lophophorate she

Depending on the amount collected, their income just fromoysters is about THB 100-200/day per woman. When thesea gypsies are not collecting oysters they stay at home.They have no concept of how long they spend collecting orhow much they earn. However, an approximate calculationof their income is THB 1000/month/person (THB 150 x 6.5collecting periods/month).

The ladies from Ban Lang chip the oysters from rocks or

mangrove roots using a small hammer. In one day (workingfor about 2 to 3 hours) one lady can collect one full basketweighing about 4 kg. The oysters are sold to the villagewholesaler at THB 8-10/kg. If the oysters are shucked, themeats obtained (about 700-800g) are sold for THB 100.The old lady from Ban Lang has a monthly income of aboutTHB 1000 (THB 100 x 10 days).

Large oysters, hoy nang rom, are still dived for by fourpeople from the sea gypsy village at Koh Lao Nok. Theygo diving for 2-3 days at a time using one small boat foreach man or woman. Sometimes they go to sea to divebut usually they stay more inshore around the village, near

to a V-net fish trap. The large oyster species found onrocky surfaces or small coral reefs sells for THB 120/kg,

but it is now very rare in the area.


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Lingula lingula(known as hoy rak or hoy lak) are also foundon the sandy mudflats and are collected by raking. Theyare not common but are considered a delicacy and sell forTHB 25-30 /kg.

1.1.5 Other shells

Other molluscs that are collected on the sandy mudflats

opposite Hat Sai Khao harbour are: hoy dow (Naticasp.),which are usually eaten rather than sold, depending onthe market; hoy tok nam (Pugniasp.), which has a verydense meat which is not very good but can be eaten; andhoy chak tin (Strombussp.) which has a nice, sweet taste,but this animal is rare.

1.1.6. Mangrove species

In the mangrove forest there are a number of molluscs thatare collected to sell or for consumption by the local villagers.Hoy jup jeng (Cerithidea obtusaandC. rhizophorarum) are

collected from the trunks and roots of mangrove trees. Theyare sold in the local market for THB 20/kg, in Ranong marketfor THB 25-30/kg and in Phuket for THB 50/kg. The snailsare boiled and eaten with curry soup. Nerita planospiraand Nerita articulata(hoy nam prik or hoy kem) are soldfor THB 10/kg.

Sea slugs, local name tak fah (Onchidium sp.), arecollected from mangrove trunks and roots and are used asa fish bait. Shipworms (actually a bivalve mollusc Teredospp.), known in Thai as pliang mai, are found in deadmangrove roots. The mangrove roots are broken open andthe soft tissue collected and sold for THB 150/kg.Shipworms are eaten raw with lep maer nang, a tree withleaves like the nail of a ladies hand. Pliang mai areconsumed by women who have just given birth. Becauseshipworms are difficult to collect and do not keep very longafter collection, they are only consumed in the villagesand are not found in the markets. The villagers believe thatthe pliang mai will become a fish (mudskipper) when itmatures. Hoy gun (Geloinasp.) is a large clam found inthe mangrove soil that is eaten locally. The black searoyster (Isognomon epphipium) is common in mangroveforests where it is found attached to mangrove roots andtrunks. This species is sold for THB 10/kg.

1.2 Fishing

1.2.1 Squid, Cuttlefish and Octopus

The Indian squid (muk kuay,Loligo duvauceli) and the big-fin reef cuttlefish (muk hom, Sepioteuthis lessoniana) areharvested traditionally at night by using a boat with a

spotlight; squid and cuttlefish attracted by the light caught in a net. They are also caught in V-net traps. Tmiddleman at Ban Tha Chang sells the Indian squidother middlemen at a price of THB 40/kg and THB 80for big fin reef squid. The population of squid and cuttlehas increased in the last two years, but the price dropped (it used to be THB 140/kg).

In Ban Tha Chang there is one fisherman who uses tr

to catch muk hom. The season for this species is fmonths a year from January to April; in December man was making the traps in preparation for the comseason. In the other months of the year he does otypes of fishing crab, fish and shrimp using a floatingin the sea. He uses traps as the cuttlefish stay alive atherefore their quality and price is better. During cuttlefish season he goes to sea every day and colleabout 30 kg of live cuttlefish at a time. He lays 25 trapthe early morning and goes back to the Ban Tha Chharbour in the evening to sell the catch to a middlemanabout THB 70/kg. The traps are weighted and float in

sea about 2 m from the bottom. The cuttlefish are usu300 - 400 g in body weight but are sometimes 500 g, the largest reach 1 kg. The traps are put out in the near Payam Island about 1.5 to 2 hours from Ban TChang by large fishing boat. The traps are made fflexible bamboo and timber (not mangrove). He puts value fish inside as bait and catches about 10 squid cage. Finfish and crabs are able to escape from the trbut fishermen believe that these species actually avareas where there are many squid.There is only one perin Ban Tha Chang that uses cuttlefish traps, but theyused by more than 10 people in Ban Hat Sai Dam.

1.3 Aquaculture

1.3.1 Mussels

Although the culture of oysters and other mollusshellfish occurs on a large scale in many parts of Thailathere has been little development of mollusc culturRanong Province because of a lack of natural spatOyster culture was attempted in the 1980s with suppfrom the Bay of Bengal Programme (BOBP), but with commercial success.

There is a green mussel farm (hoy marang poo, Peviridis), operating a rope culture system from a floabamboo raft at Ban Hat Sai Khao (Figure 9). The farmright on the seaward edge of Klong Ngao estuary just whthe blue water zone begins. The farm was established oeight months ago, so it is too early to judge its succeThe 900 bamboo lengths being used as the materiaattachment cost THB 30,000 including transport and w

each cut up into 7-10 parts. The seed mussels werebou


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Figure 9:A floating raft unit for hanging rope cultureof green mussels (Perna viridis) at the mouth

of Klong Ngao

from Prachuap Kiri Khan. The wholesale price for musselsis THB 6/kg. The owner expected to harvest the musselsafter seven months, but it will take 10 months this firsttime because of the poor water quality experienced inSeptember and October, which he associated with thejellyfish boom that occurred during this period (see section3.3.6). He expects to harvest a minimum of 4,000 kg ofmussels (equivalent to THB 24,000).

At present, there are no other examples of large-scalemollusc culture in Klong Ngao. A number of farmers fromHat Sai Khao, Ban Tha Chang and Koh Lao have attacheda few ropes to their floating fish cages and are rearingmussels (Perna viridis) and oysters (Crassostreaspp.).This is being done to test the potential for mollusc culture,which is an attractive low risk alternative to fish culture,except that the current market prices for mussels andoysters are rather low.

2. Crustacean species

Shrimp and crab species are very important commerciallyin Ranong. Sesarmid crabs are being collected by handfrom the mangrove forest; although this was once asubsistence activity it is now becoming a large commercialoperation. Shrimp paste (kapi) is processed in Koh Laoand Ban Tha Chang where it is an important local cottageindustry. Mud crabs are caught using baited traps; the largeranimals are sold in the market and the smaller ones areused to produce soft-shell crab. This involves keeping smallmud crabs individually in plastic boxes until they moult.As soon as a crab has moulted it is removed while stillsoft and placed on ice until it can be frozen or sold. Thisactivity is now big business in Ranong, with two largeprojects already set up, one a floating soft-shell crab farm

near Koh Lao, the other a pond-based farm bordering KlNgao. A third large farm is planned near Hat Sai Kharbour. There are many other smaller crab farms and solocal villagers are also experimenting with small numbof mud crab boxes at their fish farms.


2.1.1 Shrimp

A number of men from Ban Tha Chang catch shrimp usspears. The shrimp they catch are black tiger shrimp (kkula dam, Penaeus monodon) and white shrimp (kkhao, Penaeus merguiensis). The men go out at night each man rows a small boat through the mangrove creeThey have a powerful head torch which they use to attand see the shrimp. The shrimp spear is 1m long and seven prongs. The shrimp are stabbed slowly so as nodamage them. In one night an old man from Ban Tha Chstated that he could catch about 7-8 kg of shrimp (50 shr

per kg). In December 2001 black tiger shrimp were solTHB 310/kg; large white shrimp for THB 245/kg; small wshrimp for THB 195/kg; and other shrimp for THB 135or 45/kg depending on their size. Nowadays, the men ogo shrimp fishing when they have free time and therefore more of a hobby than a subsistence occupatOperating shrimp push nets in the mangrove canals mathe water turbid so it becomes difficult to see the shrand sometimes they do not catch anything.

2.1.2 Sesarmid crabs

There are two main species of sesarmid crabs that collected from the mangrove forests at night. The specare poo kam daeng (Episesarma mederi, with red clawwhich prefers the intertidal zone; and poo kam khaoversicolor, purple and white claws), which is more aquand when it sees a man will dive into water. These sesarcrabs are collected, then preserved with salt, to be solda delicacy. For example, salt crab (poo khem) is vpopular with papaya salad (poo som tam).

A boatload of 15 men from Ban Tha Chang spend abnine hours every night collecting sesarmid crabs in surrounding mangrove area (Figure 10). The headman drthe men off in threes in different places. The men wrubber shoes, long socks, trousers, long shirts, gloves a balaclava to protect them against mosquito bites. Talso have a waterproof container around their necks to hcigarettes, another good way of keeping away mosquitoOn their head they wear a torch and they carry the batwith them around their neck. They have a large bucwhich they bang on the ground to bring the sesarmid cr


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Figure 10:Unloading mangrove sesarmid crabs atBan Tha Chang harbour after the nights collection

Figure 11:A mangrove crab collector with headtorch and other collecting gear

up from their holes. They catch the sesarmid crabs with

their hands and put them into a mesh bag (Figure 11).

In one trip the men can collect about 100-200 kg ofmangrove crabs (40-50 crabs per kg) or 5,000 10,000crabs/night in total. The head fisherman who organisesthis activity and who operates the boat, sells all the catchin Ranong for THB 20/kg. Some of the men ferment thecrabs themselves and some sell to a middleman in Ban

Lang. The middleman in Ban Lang also collects as well asprocesses sesarmid crabs. The head fisherman seems tobe the only person organising sesarmid crab collecting onsuch a large scale, but a few other people in the villagealso collect sesarmid crabs. The head fisherman has beendoing this for six years. He believes that over the past fiveyears the supply (availability) of sesarmid crabs has notchanged and neither has their size.

In Ratchakut there is another major collector and processorof sesarmid crabs. The local people collect sesarmid crabsalong the coastline in the mangrove forest for him, for whichthey receive payment of THB 18/kg. This dealer has morethan 100 people collecting crabs and selling them to him.He gets about 400-500 kg at a time. In one month collectingis done on about 26 days at low neap and spring tides.This is equivalent to about 11,700 kg of crabs per month(450 kg x 26 days). The process of fermenting the sesarmidcrabs in salt is shown in Box 2.

Small sesarmids are sold for THB 200/box and the largecrabs for THB 280/box (1 box = 7kg). Product qualitydepends on the taste, which should be fresh with no smell(Figure 12).

In one day, the Ratchakut collector sells about 10 kg of

preserved/fermented sesarmid crabs to middlemen. Hesells the sesarmid crabs at about THB 35-40/kg. Thereare about 20 crabs per kg. The salted crabs were beingsold in Ranong market at THB 50/kg. Every day about twotonnes of sesarmid crabs are sent to Bangkok, andsometimes he receives orders from Bangkok for 5-6 tonnes.

One supermarket chain in Bangkok is selling presersesarmid crabs for the equivalent of THB 97/kg. They

displayed in plastic consumer packs containing 400 g6-8 individual crabs. The Ratchakut dealer suggested all the sesarmid crabs he supplies are consumedThailand. He did not believe that any crabs are exporbut clearly salted mangrove crab does have potentiaan export product.

The crab collector/processor in Ratchakut has bfermenting sesarmid crabs for about 10 years and isoriginal collector and processor in this area. Ten yeago one tonne of sesarmid crabs was collected per dfive years ago 5-6 tonnes of sesarmid crabs were collecper day, but now the daily amount is only 400-500 kg. T

decrease in his business is because more people ncollect sesarmid crabs and do the fermentation procthemselves. There are about 30-40 other people wprocess sesarmid crabs in the Ranong area, but the opinof those interviewed is that the crab population has decreased in any way.

2.1.3 Mantis shrimp

The mantis shrimp (Squillaspecies) is collected in smquantities from low-lying sand flats. It is reared occasionin the floating cages used for grouper and seabass,

this is practised only as a hobby.

2.2 Fishing

2.2.1 Shrimp

The small mysid shrimp Acetes sibogace(kuong ksan som o) is an important species in the Ran


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Figure 12:Preserved mangrove sesarmid crabsafter salting

mangroves because it is used to make kapi, a form ofshrimp paste used in cooking. Push nets or scissor nets,are made up of a fine mesh size bag net that is mountedon two long bamboo poles (about 10 to 20 m). Woodenshoes are attached to the lower end of the bamboo poles

to prevent them from sticking in the mud. Small push netscan be operated by manpower (Figure 13) while the largerones are generally operated by motorised boat. Thaivillagers in Ban Koh Lao and Ban Tha Chang are involvedin the process of making kapi but fishermen in many of thesurrounding villages (Ban Hat Sai Khao, Ban Koh Lao Nok,Ban Lang and Ban Hat Sai Dam) also use push nets tocollect shrimp and sell to them.

A man and his son from Ban Hat Sai Khao use a smallmotorised push net to catch the small Acetesshrimp inthe mangrove waterways. They can catch up to 300-400kg of Acetesper day by push net. They wash the shrimp

(Figure 14 shows about 100 kg being washed) and thensell it at THB 14/kg to Ban Koh Lao where it is processedto make shrimp paste (kapi). They go fishing for Acetesabout 2-3 days during every 14 day cycle.

Sea gypsies also go push net fishing in the mangrovecanals. In the village there are about 10-20 boats for pushnetting, mainly to collect small shrimp. In one night, oneman can collect about 20 kg of small shrimp. This is asmall quantity compared to the fishermen in Ban Hat SaiKhao and Ban Koh Lao because the sea gypsies only userowing boats and operate the push nets by hand. The smallshrimp they collect are sold to Koh Lao for THB 13/kg tobe made into kapi.

In Koh Lao village there are many motorised boats withpush nets for catching Acetes(but also other species) tomake shrimp paste. The whole of Koh Lao village is involvedin making kapi. The lady in Figure 15 is contracted to drythe shrimp at THB 4/kg of finished product. In one weekabout 100 to 200 kg of kapi is produced. The kapi making

Figure 13:Push net fishing for Acetes shrimpin front of the mangrove forest

Box 2. The process of preserving

sesarmid crabs

Fresh crabs are washed first with freshwater.

A saltwater solution is prepared in a largeblack tank to kill and preserve the crab.

The saltwater solution is:

200 kg of salt pellets (1 bag = 25-30 kg =THB 7) which is dissolved in 400 litres offreshwater and mixed with a hand-size solidpiece of Aluminium ammonium sulphateand1 bag of bon daeng (lime mixed withturmeric to crisp the crab shell).

The crabs are left in this solution for aboutthree hours.

The crabs are then cleaned again infreshwater four times (this is very importantas determines the good quality of theproduct).

The crab sizes are then selected into largeand small.

An empty tin box, which costs THB 15 islined with a plastic bag and the crabs areplaced inside.

Salt solution from the black tank and an extrahandful of salt pellets are then added.

The tin is sealed; the salted crabs can bekept for up to 30 days.

The crabs are ready for consumption and aresold to middlemen for THB 40/kg.

Salted crabs often go via middlemen to local

markets and to Bangkok where they are soldfor up to 100 THB/kg.


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Figure 14: Washing the catch of Acetesshrimp

in Ban Had Sai Khao

process is explained in Box 3. High quality kapi, which isred in colour is sold at THB 80/kg, although the averageprice is THB 50/kg. The consumer is attracted to colourwhen judging the quality of kapi.

About 10 families make kapi in Ban Tha Chang, but morethan 16 are involved in push net fishing for the raw material(Acetesshrimp). One man from Ban Tha Chang who goesby himself to fish using a push net can collect 20-40 kg ofshrimp in one fishing trip. In one month he fishes on about15 days, depending on the semi-diurnal cycle. Four monthsof the year, from March to June, the shrimp catch is low

and he can collect only about 20 kgof fresh shrimp at a

time, which makes about 10 kg of processed kapi. InOctober to December the quantity he can catch increasesto about 40 kg and this can make about 20 kg of processedkapi. The other months of the year provide intermediate

catches.

Box 3. Processes involved in thetraditional making of the product

known as kapi

Shrimp Acetesare caught using a push net

Shrimp are washed

Shrimp are mixed with salt for one day

Shrimp are left to dry in the sun for three daysuntil they become black in colour and any

small fish are removed Shrimp are pounded in a large wooden pestleand mortar for one day to remove the eyes

Shrimp paste is sundried for one day

Shrimp paste is packed in plastic and sold askapi

Approximately 2.8 kg of fresh shrimp makes1 kg of processed kapi

One kilogramme of finished kapi product is sold from BTha Chang at THB 50-60/kg. A middleman comes to cothe product but they also sell small quantitiesthemselves. One lady has been doing this for 20 yebut recently there has been a marketing problem with kThe price has not increased for the past five years, becaof increased competition. For example kapi madeMyanmar only costs THB 9/kg, but the quality is not

good as they dry the shrimp on the road, not on platforand add artificial colouring. Myanmar kapi can last oone month whereas Thai kapi can last one yeSometimes producers mix Myanmar kapi with Thai kapreduce the cost, or if there is not enough Thai kapi availaThe mixed kapi product sells at THB 35/kg. Kapi was besold in Ngao and Ranong markets for THB 60/kg anRanong town at THB 110/kg.

Shrimp are also caught in V-net traps. Five specieshrimp were identified, known as kung say (Metapenasp.), kung kuay, kung khao (white shrimp, Penamerguiensis), kung plong (yellow legs) and kung kula d

(black tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon) (AnnexHowever, the shrimp are separated by size not speciethis is what the price is based on. V-net fishermen small shrimp at THB 15/kg and large shrimp at THB 1kg to middlemen at Ban Tha Chang. The shrimp middlemat Ban Tha Chang are women. These women sell to anomiddleman who comes from outside the village at THBkg and THB 150/kg, respectively. The large sized shrgo to restaurants and the small sized shrimp processed; they are boiled, and then peeled and driethe sun to make kung haeng (dried shrimp). If there enough shrimp (about 1000 kg or more), and they are good size and quality, the cold storage is contacted,

the shrimp are offered for processing for export.

Figure 15: Drying Acetesshrimp to make Kapiat Koh Lao


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Figure 16: The black mud crab Scylla olivacea

(poo dam) used to produce soft shell crab

2.2.2 Mud crab

The mud crab (Scyllaspp.) is an important commercial

crab in the Ranong mangrove ecosystem. There are thought

to be three species of mud crab in Ranong. The mostcommon species is Scylla olivaceaor poo dam (Figure16). The second species S. paramamosain(poo khao) isuncommon and the third species S. tranquebarica(pookaew) is very rare (Suparp Pripanapong, pers. comm).

In Ban Lang there is a family of five that operates as themajor dealer for mud crabs and have done so for about tenyears. The local fishermen collect mud crabs in themangroves using traps baited with low value fish.Increasingly, however, mud crabs are also being imported

to Ranong from Myanmar, but they are easy to identifyfrom local crabs as their carapace colour is black and the

pattern of tying up the crabs body with string is different.

The fishermen collect mud crabs on about 13-14 days inone month (during the semi-lunar high spring tides). TheBan Lang dealer buys the mud crabs according to size,based on three different categories:

(1) Large size (carapace width = 12 cm; wt = 320 g or3-5 crabs/kg) price THB 70/kg;

(2) Medium size (carapace width = 8 cm; wt = 150 g or

8 crabs/kg) price THB 60/kg; and

(3) Small size (carapace width = 6cm; wt = 60g or 15crabs/kg) price THB 30/kg.

The small sized crab are used to stock the dealers soft-shell mud crab farm. The medium and large crabs arepacked into plastic baskets (8 kg of crabs per basket) andare stored until they have about 200-300 kg crabs for

shipment. (The maximum is 500-600 kg and the minim100 kg crabs). The second middleman from Ranoncontacted when the required amount is available.collects the crabs and delivers them to Bangkok the saevening. The crabs are sold to the second middlemaTHB 90-100/kg for medium and large sized crabs (abocrabs/kg). Crab claws accidentally lost during handare sold for THB 80/kg. Only the largest and best cr

will be exported to Taiwan, the rest are consumedThailand.

In Ban Tha Chang there is an old crab fisherman collector. He purchases mud crabs from the lofishermen but also goes crab fishing himself. commented that over the last five years the average of mud crabs has decreased and the larger sizes hdisappeared. Medium sized crabs (8-9 crabs/kg: T60/kg) are about 80% of the catch and small sizes crabs/kg: THB 40/kg) about 20%. Five years ago small mud crabs were thrown back into the sea, now they are in high demand from the soft shell m

crab farms (and worth THB 18-30 each). The largest che has ever caught had a carapace width of 16 Twenty years ago there were many of this size, but year in Ranong he found only a single very large crweighing 1.7 kg. This man has been mud crab fishfor the past 20 years and his views fit the scienevidence showing that the mud crab fishery in Ranhas removed most of the adult crab stock in recent ye(Moser et al., 2002).

2.2.3 Swimming crabs

Some villagers in Ban Hat Sai Khao use a net to caswimming crabs Portunus pelagicus (poo mah) obtain 5-6 kg per catch. They sell the crabs aliveTHB 150/kg or THB 50-90/kg depending on size. Mthan 10 boats in Ban Tha Chang village collect swimmcrab. The crabs are caught from the inshore zone usgill nets. Two people go out per boat in the eventhey lay the net and then return in the early mornThey can collect about 10 kg of crabs per boat per tIn one month the fishermen go about 14 days duspring tides. Some fishermen also use traps for swimmcrab.

There is a processing factory for swimming crab in BTha Chang that is owned by the cold storage facilityseafood in Ranong. The ladies at the factory boil crabs, remove the hard shell and then package themice to send to the Ranong facility for processing. Tfrozen meat crab is exported, to the USA (the processcompany is American).


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2.3 Aquaculture

2.3.1 Mud crab

There is a large floating mud crab farm rearing Scyllaolivacea(poo dam) opposite Koh Lao. Special plastic boxesare used for rearing soft shell crabs (poo pok = carapaceloose, or poo nim = soft crab) while net cages are used torear meat crabs. There were 80 cages and 20,000 boxes

(one crab per box) in December 2001 (Figure 17). Crabfishermen are providing the farm with seed but most of thelarger crabs now come from Myanmar, as there is not

enough in Ranong.

Each box is checked every three hours, 24 hours a day(with the help of six workers). It is necessary to checkevery 3 hours because in this time a moulted shell canharden. Crabs that have moulted are removed immediatelyand placed on ice. The unmoulted crabs stay in the boxesfor about 15 days (a maximum of 30 days and a minimumof one day). The turnover rate is thus very high. If a moultedcrab is missed and the shell has already hardened, it isput into the nets and fattened as meat crab. In the netsthe crabs are stocked at 20 kg and held for 7-8 days. Allthe mud crabs are fed with low value fish. The unmoultedcrabs in boxes are fed with one fish every other day. Themeat crabs are fed two times daily.

The soft shell mud crabs are sold at THB 220/kg (one kg

is equivalent to about six crabs). The meat crabs are soldaccording to size: 5, 4 or 3 crabs per kg (THB 150/kg) and2 crabs per kg (THB 200/kg). The soft shell and meat crabsare sold to buyers in Ranong, Bangkok, Samut Sakhornand Samut Prakan. The farm has been in Koh Lao for twoyears but operated for two years previously at Amphoe La-un. It was towed by boat to Koh Lao because the waterquality is better there. The farm has also doubled in size in

the past two years.

The Ban Lang mud crab dealer also operates a soft-smud crab farm near his village, which has been running2-3 years in response to the strong market demandthis product and the availability of small mud crabs. Ab20% of the crabs collected from the fishermen are usethe farm. Each soft shell crab is packed into a small plabag (one crab per bag) and chilled immediately by placit in an insulated box with crushed ice. Small soft s

crabs are sold for THB 185/kg and larger soft shell crfor THB 200/kg. About 50-60 kg of soft-shell crabs produced by the farm daily.

A number of families are also attempting soft shell mcrab farming because it is so lucrative. However, a fain Ban Tha Chang lost THB 100,000 trying to produce shell crab in a mangrove canal close to the village. Tbelieve that the water quality was very bad because ofjellyfish boom in September-October 2001. Some offish cage farmers also keep a few crab boxes attachecages to experiment with mud crab rearing.

3. Fish species

3.1 Background

While most species of finfish are less valuable than shrand mud crab, collectively finfish are extremely importo the socio-economy of the mangrove communitieRanong. This is evident from the high diversity of species that the local people exploit. The biological diverepresented in the mangrove fisheries studied in Klong Nis also reflected in the varied fishing methods they util

and which range from the subsistence to commercial leAn intensive study of the mangrove fish fauna in KlNgao was conducted in 1988-89 by Macintosh et al. (19They recorded more than 120 fish species belonginmore than 40 families. Several families typically dominin the mangrove fish population, these are (by famcommon name and representative species): Leiognathi(pony-fish Secutorruconius); Clupeidae (herrings, Clufimbriata); Engraulidae (anchovies, StolephorusspeciCentropomidae (Ambassisspecies); Mugilidae (mullLizaspecies); Carangidae (Scomberoidestala).

Key features of the fish population in Klong Ngao are

(a) the great majority of fish are small in size (hence ofvalue); consequently (b) there are few larger and mvaluable fish; and (c) fish abundance and species diveare higher in the wet season, reflecting the seasonal naof the coastal climate of Ranong. These features of mangrove fish population point to the fact that many speseem to use the mangroves as nursery grounds, wothers visit the mangroves for feeding opportuni

Figure 17: A large group of floating pens and cagesnear Koh Lao used to produce soft shell crabs

(Scylla olivacea)


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(Macintosh et al., 1991). The dynamic nature of theassociation of many fish species with mangroves was alsoexplained by other researchers who identified fourcategories of finfish in Thailands mangroves: true residents,partial residents, tidal visitors and seasonal visitors.

The following description of the mangrove fisheries basedwithin the RBR is necessarily superficial and incomplete,as it covers only some of the fishing methods and species

which could be observed in a few days during the dry season(December 2001).


Many of the villagers living in the Ranong mangroves catchfish on a part-time basis to supplement their income. Theirfamilies will also eat some of the catch. Rod and line fishingis also popular for recreation and to provide extra food.

Spear fishing is the best example of a truly subsistencefishery in the mangroves in the sense that it is literallyhunting for food. There are 10-15 sea gypsies who use arowing boat or small engine boat to go spear fishing. Themen go at low tide near to V-net traps in Klong Ngao (ownedby fishermen from Koh Kam) because there are manytypes of fish around the V-net traps. They mostly catchpla duk tale (marine catfish) because they move moreslowly than other fish species. Using a long spear, oneman can catch 2-3 kg of fish, each fish weighing about700-800 g, representing a catch of 4-5 fish per fishing trip.They go spear fishing when they are hungry and mostlyeat the fish they catch. Sea gypsies also use fish traps tocatch fish to eat.

A number of men from Ban Tha Chang also go spear fishing.They usually go in their spare time to the mangrove canalsat night. They use a strong light attached to a head torch.The fishing spear they use has three prongs and is 3 mlong.

Cast net fishing is also carried out by many of the fishermenfrom the local villages, mainly as a subsistence activity.Pla kabok (mullet) and white shrimp are caught using this

method (see cover page).

3.3 Fishing methods and target species

3.3.1 Box traps

Groupers (pla khao) are the most valuable fish groupassociated with the Ranong mangroves. Although long-line fishermen sometimes catch very large individualgroupers, it is the trapping of grouper fingerlings and table-

sized fish using box traps which contributes most to

local fishing economy. Many fisher families now on-rthe grouper fingerlings they catch in floating fish cagThis in turn provides highly valued live fish for export, mato support luxury markets (such as restaurants and hote

Grouper traps (see Figure 18) are set overnight andusually collected the following morning. To a large exthe location where the traps are set determines the siz

fish caught. For table-sized fish, the traps are put arothe V-nets as this is where it is best to collect the largroupers. One family interviewed from Ban Hat Sai Kstated that a typical catch is 6-7 fish with a size rang700-1000g. If the fish caught are smaller than 700g tare reared in a cage operated in front of the familys houThe income for a family like this is about THB 10,0month. In December 2001, their cage unit was stocwith seabass (selling price THB 90/kg), grouper (THB 2kg), Johns snapper pla ang koy (THB 50/kg) and

kotkart (THB 50/kg).

Figure 18:A typical house constructed withmangrove wood at Ban Hat Sai Khao. The fishtraps (to the right) are used to catch groupers.

The trapping of grouper fingerlings is a more seasonal specialised fishery. The grouper fingerlings caught fthe mangroves are about 3 cm in length. At some timethe year there is an acute shortage of fingerlings to satthe growing demand from aquaculture. For exampleold man interviewed in Ban Tha Chang in December 2had some grouper traps to catch fingerlings. There wamiddleman asking to buy grouper fingerlings to supplfish cage producers, but December (dry season) is a tof year when there are very few fingerlings availabecause it is not the spawning season for groupers.


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Figure 19: A young girl sits beside baskets containwooden pegs (made from Xylocarpus mangrove) use

fix fishing nets on the shore.

3.3.2 Long lines

In Ban Hat Sai Khao there are eight large-engined boatsthat are used for long line hook fishing. The team spoke toa young sea-going fisherman who owns one of the boats(engine 11 hp). He has 10 sets of long lines hook, eachline having 120 hooks. He takes two days and two nightsto go to the sea to set the lines. He uses cuttlefish andshort bodied mackerel (pla tu) as bait and catches big fish

e.g. pla kapong khao (seabass, Lates calcarifer), plakapong daeng (red snapper, Lutjanus bohar), pla chalam(shark), pla mong (jack, Carangoidesspp.), pla in-si (Indo-Pacific king mackerel, Scomberomorus guttatus) and plakaben (stringray). Five people go to sea with him and intotal they can earn THB 5000/trip (2days +2nights). Hepays THB 800 for bait, THB 500 for engine gasoline andTHB 50 for ice. He sells all his fish to a local middleman atHat Sai Khao harbour near the tin mine area of Klong Ngao.He thinks his fish are delivered to Ranong, Phuket andBangkok. In one month he make five trips, except in therainy season when he cannot fish because of the weather

(strong wind), which is about six months a year. In the wetseason he switches to fishing near his home in the mangrovewaterways, then his income is THB 300-400/day. Thereare only three people in his family and they have earnedan income from fishing for more than 15 years.

Many of the villages use long line hooks for fishing tuna,pla in-si (Indo-Pacific king mackerel, Scomberomorusguttatus) and pla duk tale (catfish, Plotosus canius). On abad trip the fishermen may catch nothing, but on a goodtrip (3 days) they can earn THB 2000 and up to a maximumof THB 9000. On average THB 400-500/day of fish iscaught. The fishermen explained that in the past fish were

more available but the price was lower; now there are notas many fish but they fetch a better price.

3.3.3 Fixed V-traps

V-net traps (pong pang), consist of loose seine nettingattached between a v-shaped frame made from mangrovestakes (mainly Rhizophorawood). They are used by anumber of villages at spring tides. There are three big V-nets in the lower part of Klong Ngao that belong to the

people from Koh Kam. However, they catch only shrimp,

so they allow the sea gypsies to spear fish in or aroundthe V-nets when it is low tide.

On 13th December 2001 the V-net contained mainlyjellyfish eggs (90% of the catch) with a few mysid shrimp,small fish and small squid. The reason the catch was lowwas because the water current at low tide was not strongenough. In contrast, the next day, a man and woman from

Ban Hat Sai Dam landed a boat at Ban Tha Changharbour

with 10 baskets of fish caught from a single V-net trap wide. The harvest weight can be about 200 to 300depending on the semi-diurnal tides. A large proportiothe fish (75%) were very small low value fish that are uto make feed for caged fish. The woman separated shrimp (small THB 15/kg, large THB 140/kg), squid (T30/kg) and large fish for eating (THB 15/kg) from the value fish (THB 2/kg), while men carried the baskets.

dog-tongued sole, pla lin mar (Cynoglossussp.), whicregarded as good to eat when fried, was also separa

out and sold to middlemen for THB 25/kg.

3.3.4 Barrier nets

Some of the people from Ban Ngao fish with fixed barnets set at low tide around the mangrove forest that anchored to the substratum with wooden pegs (Figure they also lay lines with baited hooks in the canals. fishing gear is left until the following low tide. Varispecies such as pla duk tale (catfish), pla kolay, pla ka

(grouper) and pla kabok (mullet) are caught this wPreviously they could catch about 100 kg per harvest,

now 10-20 kg is more typical.

3.3.5 Eels

Eels (pla lai tale, Anguilla species) caught from mangrove mud banks are sold to an eel dealer at Ban Chang. This dealer owns a large house with seven conctanks in which the wild eel are stocked (Figure 20). In day fishermen can collect a minimum of 20 kg of wild eand a maximum of 100 kg. June to December is the pfishing season and January to May is the poorest sea

for eels.


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Figure 20:Eels caught in the mangroves being heldalive before sale.

Eel collecting is carried out by hand using a stick to probeburrows in the mud where the eels live and a small net.They sell the eels according to three size categories: small

= THB 100/kg (100-200 g eel wt.), medium = THB 220/kg(700-1000 g eel wt.) and large THB 350/kg (1000 2000 geel wt.). All the eels are exported to China, Hong Kongand Taiwan by a Bangkok middleman. Thais in general donot like to eat eel but there is a large and valuable marketabroad, which is the reason the eels can be exported soprofitably. The eels are kept for a short time until there is asufficient number to sell to the middleman, usually about200-300 kg, which takes about 2-3 days to collect. In onemonth the middleman can obtain up to 3000 kg. There isno need to feed the eels as wild eels can survive for twoweeks without food. The eels are delivered alive to Bangkok.They are packed in plastic bags with oxygen and kept at alow temperature in an ice box. The middleman suggestedthat the eel population had increased by 5-10 % from 5years ago. Last year his income was THB 5 million fromeel collecting alone, but this year it will be lower becausefishing in Myanmar is currently not allowed. He learnt howto manage and maintain eels in tanks through personalexperience. The other provinces that operate a similar tradein wild eel are Phang Nga, Kabi, Satun and Trang.

3.3.6 Other species

JellyfishJellyfish (kapoon ma plow) are highly seasonal in Ranongwaters and they were particularly important in 2001 becauseof a population boom from August to October. Ban ThaChang set up a jellyfish-processing site just to exploit thissudden opportunity. The total harvest weight per day was2000 to 3000 kg of jellyfish, with a value of about THB 1/

kg.

3.4 Aquaculture

Cage culture of finfish was introduced to Ranong abouyears ago by the Bay of Bengal project (phase 1: 1985). Initially, sea bass (Lates calcarifer) were rearedthis species could be produced in hatcheries. Seabfingerlings were given free by the Department of Fisheto the fishermen being trained in cage culture. After ph2 of the BOBP project ended in 1992, the fishermswitched to rearing grouper which they could catch eain the mangroves (Immink, 1996).

There are a number of floating fish cages in Klong Nand many more around the islands of Koh Lao and Kam (the original demonstration site for the BOBP projeThere is a ten cage floating raft unit with a house oppoBan Hat Sai Khao, which is constructed from planked timand Ceriopspoles (Figure 21). Each compartment is 2.0m x 2.0-2.5 m. There are two men staying on the ramanage the floating fish cages. They both come fromfish harbour in Ranong town. In December 2001 the ca

were stocked with more than 1000 seabass (pla kapkhao) obtained from the Department of Fisheries. The owalso had various other fish species, a small number of grmussels hanging from ropes from the floating cage, some plastic boxes for soft-shell crab production. He amentioned that groupers were kept in a cage underhouse unit. The owner and his brother stated that they earn THB 100,000/annum from fish culture.

A number of people in Ban Hat Sai Khao culture sea bor grouper in fish cages. The local term pla khao covmost species of grouper, but does not distinguish betwthem. A number of species were recorded (Annex 1),

the most common species cultured seems toEpinephelus coioides.

Figure 21:Floating fish cages for culturing groupeand sea bass at the mouth of Klong Ngao. A fixed

stake trap (V-net) to catch fish and shrimp isvisible in the background.


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The Poo Yai Ban (head man) from Koh Lao has a fish cagenear the floating crab farm, which he is managing on hisown (see cover page). He cultures seabass (pla kapongkhao) and red snapper (pla kapong daeng). He believesthat the water quality around his site is not good enoughfor grouper culture. Red snapper grows faster than seabassand both are easy to manage as they feed well and aretolerant of the local water conditions. He will sell his fish to

Phuket because he has contact with a wholesaler there.He feeds the fish once or twice a day depending on theamount of low value fish available. He obtained thefingerlings from the wholesaler (15 cm sized fingerlingsfrom Phang Nga cost THB 30, smaller sizes cost THB10), or from traps or catching by hand. He stocks onecage with 360 fish. He has seven cages, each of about9m2. After stocking it takes about four months before hesells the fish alive back to the wholesaler in Phuket (whohe contacts by mobile phone) at THB 140-170/kg. Eachfish,equivalent to 1 kg, is worth THB 120. He expected toharvest about 300 kg, one month after the interview.

The Prime Minister has provided THB one million to everyvillage in Thailand. All the Koh Lao families took the loanfrom the Government and some of the villagers used it tomake fish cages. It costs THB 30,000 to make three cagesand more than THB 200,000 to make 12 cages of 3m2

each, but the maximum loan is THB 50,000/person. Thereare 15-16 families in Koh Lao involved with fish aquaculturewith about 5-6 cages each, however they have not beenvery successful. A cage was stocked with 700 seabassand they all died within one day. Extension work is requiredto teach these villagers the techniques of fish cage culture.

A number of villagers from Ban Tha Chang have floating

fish cages to culture grouper, which are positioned not farfrom their houses. One old man who was interviewed hasa worker to look after his 30 cages. Each cage (2m x 3m)is stocked with 100 grouper, of about 200 g in body weight.These fish take about 12 months to reach a size of 1.2 kg.If the cages are stocked with grouper at 500-600 g bodyweight it takes 6 months, 700-800 g grouper take 4 months.He feeds the grouper with low value fish. The growth rate isapproximately 100 g increase in body weight per month.He sells the groupers at THB 380/kg. Five years ago theprice was THB 500/kg, but the price has decreased morerecently due to the increase in supply. He sells the grouper

to a middleman whom he believes sells them in Bangkok.

4. Mangrove plant species

The local communities in the Ranong Biosphere Reserveuse mangrove plant species for subsistence living in anumber of ways. The mangrove wood products are used

for fuelwood (firewood and charcoal), fishing gear housing (see cover page).

Mangrove posts made from the wood of Rhizophorasand Bruguieraspp. are used to support fixed, or barnets. Wooden pegs which stake the base of the nets made from Xylocarpus granatum in Ban Hat Sai K(Figure 19). The sea gypsies use Tua (Bruguiera) to mfish traps. The decking on fish cages and at the front a

or rear of houses for drying shrimp and fish are made fmangrove species. Ceriops, Bruguieraand Rhizophsaplings are used widely for decking (fish cage platfoand drying platforms for kapi) at Koh Lao (Figure Bruguiera cylindricaand B. parvifloraare used to mdrying platforms for kapi in Ban Tha Chang.

Traditional old houses in the coastal villages were mamade from mangrove wood products. The pilings of houswalls and floors were made from mangrove woRhizophoraspecies are still used frequently for the piliof houses in Ban Hat Sai Khao, Ban Koh Lao, Ban KLao Nok, Ban Koh Kam and Ban Hat Sai Dam beca

these villages are in the mangroves and this is the maccessible resource (see figure 18). Nypathatching isused for some housing at Ban Hat Sai Khao and Ban Lao Nok, but these days villagers prefer corrugated zplated iron sheeting if they can afford it. Non mangrwooden planks are also replacing mangrove wood forwalls and flooring of their houses.

Perceptions about mangroveresources and the Ranong

Biosphere Reserve

People from different villages (and depending on tactivities) voiced various opinions and concerns abmangrove resources. The local people interviewed didknow about the zonation scheme of the RBR (core, buand transition zones). Some of them had heard aboutMangrove Forest Research Centre (MFRC), but mainly as a tourist attraction, no one had visited the centre. local people have a limited understanding of the Rregulations, they know only not to cut the mangrove tre

The local people agree that the ending of the fo

concessions for charcoal production is a good thing, ais beneficial to environmental conservation and the aquresources available to fishermen. They perceive

understand that when mangrove forests are destroyed

quantity of marine animals (molluscs, crustaceans and fdeclines.


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Some species of marine animals have declined in quantityand quality from five years ago. The main reason stated forthe decline was the increase in people who live, collectand fish in the mangrove areas in Ranong. Some personal

views of the people interviewed are expressed in Box 4.

Discussion

Several hundred people utilise the mangrove resources ofthe Ranong Biosphere Reserve (RBR). These people includethe local communities that live within the reserve (totalpopulation about 2300), the people from the coastal villagesthat are situated around the RBR (total population about4300), and people that come from other districts to fish inRanong. Many of the fishery products from the mangroveare sold locally, or go to larger markets in Thailand likePhuket and Bangkok. Other products from Ranong areexported as far as China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Theeconomic benefits from the mangrove species products in

the Klong Ngao area are considerable, but not yetquantifiable.

Collecting

The mudflats and mangroves in the Klong Ngao area areutilised heavily to collect molluscs at low tide. Based onthis first study, at least 20 species of molluscs from suchareas are utilised for food, or to sell. They include mussels,clams, cockles, oysters and marine snails.

There can be up to 100 people on the mudflats at onetime. Some of the mudflats have already been overfished.

There is subsistence collecting of molluscs by very poorvillagers as a livelihood activity, but there are alsogovernment officials and other people that collect molluscsas a hobby. There is a need to limit the number of peopleallowed to collect molluscs, the species they collect andthe harvesting methods they use in order to maintainsustainable populations. It is clear that the sea gypsies ofKoh Lao and some other very poor people are heavilydependent on these natural molluscan resources and havebeen for decades, especially mangrove oysters. Otherforms of exploitation, such as the collection of cockle seedin Klong Ngao is a more recent and opportunisticdevelopment (seed cockles in Ranong now have a highvalue for aquaculture).

A large number of sesarmid crabs are being collected inthe mangrove forest each night and, with the continueddemand from Bangkok, this form of exploitation is likely toincrease. Sesarmid crabs are important ecologically in themangrove forest as bioturbators (e.g. their burrows aeratethe soil) and they process large amounts of mangrovedetritus making them a key link in the mangrove food chain

(Lee, 1998). Removal of sesarmid crabs on the commerscale now in operation is a cause for concern in the futdespite the views expressed by the crab dealers thatcrab population has not declined. A study of environmental impact of collecting sesarmid crab is certamerited.

FishingA general issue in the RBR is the impact of over fishwhich has resulted in a steady decline in the catchefish, shrimp, crabs and molluscs in recent years. Sevfactors have contributed to this situation, but it is possible to quantify them individually:

a) Allocation of large areas of mangrove forestconcessions for charcoal production (this practice has nterminated and all the mangrove forest will have conservastatus from 2002, but it will take time for the environmto recover).

b) From about 1994 closed traps were introduced for mcrab fishing, which greatly increased the catch per effort compared to the traditional open traps uexclusively prior to 1994. Also from about this tifishermen could market even small mud crabs becausthe start up of soft shell crab farming.

c) The economic recession which hit Thailand from 1998 increased pressures on natural resources as mpeople lost their normal livelihoods, or experienced a fatheir income.

d) People from other places (outsiders) have come the mangroves for collecting and fishing, causing confover resource use with the local people.

e) The expansion of coastal aquaculture in Ranong stimulated greater demand/higher prices for seed resourincluding grouper fingerlings, cockle seed and immatmud crabs. Low value fish is also in high demand to fcaged fish (groupers, seabass, snappers) and mud cra

f) Some mangrove species have become more sought abecause they now support high value external markets demand for the products is coming from outside RanoThis includes eels, mangrove sesarmid crabs and m

crabs.

The black mud crab (Scylla olivacea) has been heaexploited in the Ranong mangroves for many years asingle species fishery. Previously, the white mud crab

paramamosain) was also quite common (making up ab

10% of the catch in the early 1980s) but is now very raThe average size of mud crabs has also declisignificantly due to overfishing. However because of


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Box 4. Local peoples perceptions about mangrove resources

Molluscs

The sea gypsy ladies recognise that 5 years ago the size of oysters was much larger and that the quality has now reduced, possbecause of over collecting. The sea gypsies cannot remember the price of oysters 5 years ago but whereas they used to collect baskets of oysters in one day five years ago, it now takes 3-4 days to collect the same amount.

The ladies from Ban Lang also recognised that 5 years ago oysters were more available everywhere and their size was larger. old lady used to collect 4-5 kg/day but now only 2-3 kg/day and sometimes even less. There are many more people collecoysters now from other districts of Ranong. Consequently there is over collecting and the selling price has fallen. However,

believes that if there was no mangrove she would still be able to collect oysters from the mud flats.

The women and children collecting cockles from Ban Lang said cockle production had dropped. They used to collect 20 kg/daynow only 4-5 kg/day. Five years ago there used to be large cockles but now they are very hard to find.

The cockle dealer from Ban Lang also stated that the size and quantity of cockles had decreased in the last 5 years.

Crustaceans

A kapi processing lady from Ban Tha Chang stated that the quantity of Acetesshrimp has been stable over the past 5 years butvillage fishermen have a problem with the local Department of Fisheries (DoF) officers as they say they use too small nets and fish the Acetespopulation. The DoF prohibits push nets from August to October because this is the main spawning season. Tlady understood the concept of protecting the fish and shrimp but in the canals there is no problem with collecting.

A lady from Ban Tha Chang would like to protect the mangrove forest as it helps her family because the small Acetesshrimp liv

the canals.According to the women in the crab processing factory in Ban Tha Chang, in the past the swimming crab was more available much larger.

The Ratchakut collector of sesarmid crabs believes that if there is no mangrove there will be no sesarmid crabs. The forest shbe kept and not cut.

The mud crab fisherman and collector from Ban Tha Chang believes that the mud crab is a good bio-indicator of the mangrove he knows the relationship between mangrove and mud crab. If there were no mangrove the area would be full of bivalves insteadcrabs.

Fish

A long line fisherman from Ban Hat Sai Khao stated that 5 years ago 10 fish/line were caught but now only 3 are caught becaof overfishing. Fishing gears are now better developed and this has lowered fish population in the sea. He cuts Rhizophoratreewood to construct his house. He thinks that if all the mangrove were cut down it would be a serious problem for small local fishermbut not for him because he could still find other fish in the nearby sea. He used to catch big sea bass weighing 7-8 kg/fish but the biggest size is only 2-3 kg. He enjoys his life but is worried that some local people are using too small net sizes to catch smafish. There should be fishing zones so that big boats fish in the sea and small boats and poor people fish in mangrove canals.

A teacher from Ngao thinks that the fish population now is only 20% of that 5 years ago. The fish size has decreased and sospecies have disappeared such as pla kob and pla lumpok. There are fewer or no dolphins that come to the mangrove cacompared to 5 years ago, although sea turtles are still sometimes caught in V-nets. The local teacher believed that if there weremangrove forest there would be no food for the people. He believed that shrimp ponds should be banned in mangrove areas becathe chemicals used are harmful and decrease the animal population in the canals. There used to be no problems in the mangrcanals when there were no shrimp ponds. He also stated that the mangrove forest is better now because the forest is recovering asome activities in the mangrove forest were banned.

The eel collector at Ban Tha Chang said if there was no mangrove forest he could still collect wild eels from the canals and mof the river.

According to the female cockle collector from Ban Ngao fish, crabs and molluscs have decreased and are becoming harder to in the mangrove canals. Medium-sized fishing boats now have to fish in mangrove canals because the Myanmar Sea is cloMore fishermen and fishing nets at the mouth of the river resulted in many conflicts. The local people living nearby should have prioto collect and fish in the area. The government has a policy to manage the mangrove resources but it is never done.

The female cockle dealer from Ban Lang also had similar views. Her grandfather used to catch many more fish. There is overfisand over collecting because the human population has increased and more than 70% of them fish. Also because there are mpeople from outside Ranong coming here to fish.


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development of soft-shell mud crab culture, there is highdemand even for small immature crabs. The largest softshell crab farm in Ranong (Tri-ring Co.) now gets about70% of its crab stock from Myanmar, rather than from thelocal Thai fishermen.

Recommendations for the introduction of fishing regulationsfor mud crab, such as a minimum size for females of 10cm carapace width, were made many years ago when the

adult population of S. olivaceawas already in decline inRanong (Macintosh et al., 1991), but to date the mud crabfishery remains unmanaged.

Aquaculture

Aquaculture development has great potential to benefit localfisher families who, faced with declining catches, havestarted caged fish culture to supplement their incomes.However, the expansion of aquaculture needs to becontrolled to avoid wealthier people from outside the RBRinvesting in finfish and mud crab farming. Not only will this

compete unfairly with local families for cage sites and theother resources needed to support aquaculture (especiallyseed and feed), there is a danger that too many aquaculturecages crowded together, will lead to water pollution anddisease problems. Any expansion of shrimp or mud crabfarming on mangrove land around Klong Ngao is also likelyto lead to the same problems and potential conflictsbetween wealthy investors and fisher families.

There has been a rapid development of aquaculture in theRanong mangrove ecosystem, especially with cage cultureof finfish. There is also a new and very large cage cultureproject to produce soft shell crab (mud crab Scylla olivacea),capable of holding up to 50,000 crabs. One fisherman hasstarted rope culture of mussels (Perna viridis) using afloating platform, which is the first venture into molluscculture in the RBR.

Management

The aquatic biodiversity of the RBR represented by thefish, crustaceans and molluscs exploited by local people,and now increasingly by outsiders, belongs to a commonpool. There is no resource allocation and even where

regulations do exist (e.g. the ban on motorised push netfishing) there is no enforcement. Exclusion of non-traditionalusers of the mangrove ecosystem is not possible in practiceand there are no incentives to conserve or protect naturalresources, with the notable exception of the ban on cuttingof mangrove trees which is widely (but not exclusively)complied with.

Local people who still depend on mangrove biodiversity fortheir livelihood have little understanding about the objectives

of the RBR and have so far not been involved inmanagement, although they have participated in somangrove reforestation activities.

Recommendations

The following recommendations are preliminary, as otwo short field research visits to Ranong have bconducted to date. However they highlight some of key issues affecting the sustainable utilisation of mangrbiodiversity and the need for stronger conservamanagement to meet the objectives of the RanoBiosphere Reserve, as an example of a protected mangrarea which also supports the traditional way of life ofpeople living there. These recommendations also pointsome priorities for further research.

Cockles

Cockle seed are now collected by large numbers of lopeople to sell to dealers who supply cockle farmerKapoe District. As the habitat for cockles is limited to llying muddy sand flats within Klong Ngao and otmangrove creeks, it is very easy for the cockle populato become depleted. A study of the recruitment, growcarrying capacity or natural yield estimation of cockwithin Klong Ngao is urgently needed in order to assthis resource and to recommend ways to conserve sustainably manage cockle culture. For example, demarcation of collecting areas, or a minimum size licould be proposed based on biological knowledge of mangrove resource.

Sesarmid crabs

A study of the ecological impact of the exploitationmangrove sesarmid crabs for boo som tam (crab saladrecommended as sesarmids are one of the most imporanimal groups in the mangrove community (Lee, 1998particular, the study should examine the recruitmenjuvenile crabs into heavily collected sites in order to man

collecting areas and prevent over collection.

Mud crabs

Fishermen catching mud crabs in the RBR shouldeducated to protect this important fishery resource. Soof them do voluntarily return very small mud crabs tomangroves (S. Moser: pers. comm.) and this pracshould be widely encouraged throughout the RBR. T


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should also be taught to recognize and release all immaturefemale mud crabs (less than 10 cm carapace width) andmaturing females during the spawning season, which inRanong is July to October, with August-September beingthe peak period (Macintosh et al., 1993).

Currently, utilisation of the mud crab resource use is notsustainable at the present level. Although many poorfishermen still depend heavily on mud crab fishing for their

livelihood, the benefits from soft shell crab farming are goingto a few rich businessmen involved in aquaculture andseafood exporting. As these crab farmers are generallywell educated, their cooperation in promoting moreconservation activities with mud crabs should be includedin the RBR management plan.

A large proportion of the mud crabs supplying the soft-shell farms are from Myanmar. More research is urgently

required on breeding mudcrabs so that the juvenile cr

can be restocked in their natural habitat.

Acetes fishery

Motorised push net fishing is illegal but it supports Koh Lao community and the important cottage indufor shrimp paste (kapi). The push nets however are v

destructive to the habitat, they destroy juveniles of mspecies and have a large bycatch. The numbers of pnets should be limited and permitted only to registeusers. There is already a ban on push netting for thmonths of the year (August-October) to protect the spawnstock, but this Department of Fisheries regulation is raenforced, despite its critical importance to the conservaof juvenile fish and shellfish.


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Mangrove product marketing

Certain fishery products are strongly identifiable with themangroves, such as shrimp paste (kapi), sesarmid crabsand oysters (Figure 22). The villagers living in the RBR andother local people could benefit if these products werepromoted to consumers under an ecological or green labelidentifiable with the RBR. Product quality should also beimproved to increase their value and attractiveness. Outlets

for such mangrove products would include the local shops,restaurants and hotels in Ranong (Figure 22). However theorganization of such an initiative would probably requirestrong backing from the provincial administration and theprivate sector, as well as the local villagers. Moreover,tourism in Ranong has still not recovered from therecession of 1998, so the demand for these specialproducts would be constrained, at least in the short term.

Recommendations on local community support

The local people within the RBR need to be better informedabout the mangrove forest, its resources and its ecologicaland economic benefits. Information about the RBR shouldbe disseminated through meetings, study tours and themass media (radio, TV and newspapers).

The local people need to be made aware of the permittedand non-permitted activities in the RBR, and the reasonsfor them. There needs to be extension advice given fromthe local agencies to the communities.

If the local communities were given a sense of ownershipof the mangroves, and given stewardship of the resourcesfor them to protect on a sustainable basis, this may be agood way to conserve resources and protect them fromdestructive exploitation by others.

A co-management approach is needed. There should bean action plan with a budget shared be

ranong biosphere reserve

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