Achievements and prospects of fisheries research in Taiwan. In：I C. Liao and J. Baker (eds.)

Abstract

Fisheries research in Taiwan began at the time of Japanese occupation, having a history of 90 years long. There used to be three main research areas: marine fisheries, aquaculture, and marine food technology. Recently, fisheries biology, aquaculture biotechnology, fisheries in-formation, and fisheries economics have been added among the research areas. The building of the 43-ton research vessel Ryo Kai Maru in 1909 marked the beginning of marine fisheries research in Taiwan. The vessel engaged in the investigation of fishing envi-ronments and fisheries resources in the coastal areas. Up to the present, the important achievements in marine fisheries include: making an inquiry into krill resources in the Antarc-tic Ocean; estimating and investigating the resources of tuna fisheries; and cooperating with international organizations on tuna resource administration, such as the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (10TC), International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), South Pacific Commission (SPC), Inter-American Tropical Tunas Commission (IATTC), and Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT). Recently, the Taiwan Fisheries Research Institute (TFRI) joined the FAO in the investigation of deep-sea fishes off the east coast of the Philippine Island of Luzon, which was used in the publication of the identifi-cation guide book "The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific", and itself explored the spawning ground of Japanese eel. In addition, improvement of fishing gears and fishing methods, research on the automation of fishing mechanics, and application of ultra-sonics and satellite telemetry on exploration of fishing grounds have also been implemented with good results. In aquaculture, significant results had been achieved in Chinese carps in the early years of research on artificial propagation. The subsequent expansion of aquaculture in Taiwan is based on the technology established for the artificial propagation of species such as grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) and silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) in 1963, grass prawn (Penaeus monodon) in 1968, grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) in 1969, and milkfish (Cha-nos chanos) in 1978. At present, there are more than 120 species for aquaculture in Taiwan. The application of biotechnology on aquaculture highlights recent research direction. Signifi-cant accomplishments have been obtained so far in sperm cryopreservation, chromosome manipulation, and viral disease research for preventing finfish and prawn diseases. In marine food technology, artificial feeds have been developed successfully which pro-moted aquaculture into a high profit enterprise. Furthermore, the processing of dry fish pro-ducts in the early years and the recent development of functional seafood products show the advancement in the fishery product technology. Under the pressure of population increase and the advantage of vast surrounding seas, Taiwan can do many fisheries ventures in the future. Research work where vital results may be obtained include: elucidation of the oceanographic conditions and their relations with the dy-namics of fisheries resources; development of environment-friendly fisheries such as sea cage aquaculture and stock enhancement; and deep ocean water utilization. Super-intensive recir-culating aquaculture techniques can be improved further and applications of biotechnology can be explored even more. In addition to the health seafood product development, other im-portant researches on the utilization of remnants from processing, the enhancement of value-added fishery products, and so on may also be investigated.