Pair trawling at Sakthikulangara

In 2011, the medium sized fishing boats operating from Sakthikulangara opted for a different mode of fishing. During this period, usually they used to have a good catch of Parapenaeopsis stylifera and other prawns but the catch existed for a shorter period. This prompted these fishermen to opt for a different mode called pair-trawling (local term Nikathipani), in which two boats operate as a single unit with 10-12 crew members

Unique landing of Sardinella sirm at Neendakara, Kollam

The ring seines operating at Neendakara on 14.05.08 landed a record catch of Sardinella sirm (Fig. 1). Two types of crafts were operated; thanguvallams with 90 HP inboard engine and fibre boats with 19.8 HP outboard engine. The depth of operation was 32 - 44 m north-west of Neendakara. The catch range per unit of fibre boat was 800 to 1000 kg and that of thanguvallam was 2600 - 3900 kg. Due to Ekadashi, thanguvallam and fibre boats did not operate on 15.05.2008

Bumper catch of Nemipterus spp. at Munambam Fisheries Harbour

The August 2011 postmonsoon ban period witnessed a bumper catch of Nemipterus spp. The trawlers at Munambam Fisheries Harbour after 3-5 days of fishing had enormous catch of Nemipterus spp. (Fig.1 and 2) ranging from 1.8 to 12.4 t per boat from a depth range of 65 to 80 m. The peak landing was on 08.08. 2011

Whale shark Rhiniodon typus landed at Kollam

On 12.9.06 a whale shark got entrapped in a trawl net while fishing off kollam at a depth of 46m. The fish was brought to Sakthikulangara Fisheries Harbour. The male shark measured 445 cm in total length and weighed approximately 2 tonnes. Later it was sold for Rs.1000/

First report of the black saddled coral grouper, Plectropomus laevis (Lacepede,1801) from Indian waters

A single specimen of Plectropomus laevis belonging to order: Perciformes, Family: Serranidae was found among the gillnet catch at Cochin Fisheries Harbour on 17th March, 2012. The specimen measured 70 cm in total length and had an approximate weight of 3-4 kg