9 Apr 2015 – Asian Sea-bass

Wed: Calcalifer (Bloch) is commonly called the sea-bass or giant sea perch. It has been cultured in Southeast Asia for 10+yrs. Rough est as I have been informed –  out of the 1mil eggs laid by the female fish, the hatching rate is up to 70%. The lave stage follows lasting app 3-4week.

Sea-bass fry and fingerlings should be reared in concrete or fiberglass tanks up to the size 2.5 cms or 1 inch, takes roughly up to a month. The survival rate for the nursery period would be 60 to 80%, depending on feeding, aquatic environmental conditions and the expertise of the fish farmers.

Another month and the fry are ready to be sold to other fish farmers who will then raise them for the consumption market. Not easy to take pix of a shoal of them at this stage as they are easily frightened and can swim really fast! At present in this location they are only doing the hatchery and nursery. The farming part will be included with time.

Today a fish with an infection in the eye was taken care of but sadly we lost some mature fish, app 32″ 7kg. Poor fish were  splashing away last night during a change of water – old age and under stress conditions are not good combinations. The first day for some young students here on attachment to learn about this stage of the sea-bass’s journey.

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Thu: an early morning walk to the main highway, app 900steps from the hatchery.

The morning  traffic was heavy with all the commuters heading to work! The mosque had their prayers on the loud-speakers at 04.30hrs. Have been warned, thus sleeping with ear-plugs and so far have not been wakened by them but do hear the loudspeakers going 4times the rest of the day! Another life time ago, I have questioned as to why they are unable to worship discreetly and quietly and today I am still wondering why?? At the junction of the of the main highway and Jalan Keramut Telisais is the nearest convenience store from Adeela عدیلہ نام = noble in Arabic/Urdu

Delightful tree with a swing made from an old tyre and a hammock. Felt like a kid again and wanted to go on them, but of course feeling and wanting to do so may not be a good idea. Alas if this is the result of age and wisdom – I might want to be otherwise 🙂

Found this cicada lying on its back with red ants crawling around. Thought that it was dead but to discover on turning it around, was still alive. The question, do I leave nature to take its course? But it was on the concrete and not in nature. Moved it back to Mother Nature for her to decide it’s fate. Lived at the foothills of Mt Faber, Temenggong Rd/SIN in the 1950s and have heard their sounds thru’out childhood. Only today did I meet with a cicada whose sounds have been such a comfort to me.

Japanese haiku poets found something morose in the sound, an omen of the cicada’s short adult life. In the cicada’s cry, … no sign can foretell how soon it must die – Matsuö Basho