Hatchery
April 2023
We are continually testing new methods to increase the efficiency of the hatchery process.
A key advancement has been the development of methods to successfully maintain broodstock in tanks and induce formation of reproductive tissue on demand. This is important as it removes reliance on sourcing reproductive tissue from wild Ecklonia radiata, which is only present at certain times of the year. You can read more about this work in the University of Waikato team’s paper, “Successful initiation of sorus formation and viable zoospores in Ecklonia radiata on isolated lateral fronds under hatchery conditions”.
The Preece Point hatchery is now operational.
Training has been a focus for the team, ensuring technicians are sufficiently trained to not only run the Stage 3 commercial scale operations, but also for post-pilot activity. Training modules have covered how to identify and collect suitable broodstock, and spore release and seeding practices.
November 2022
To date all seeding has occurred at the University of Waikato’s hatchery in Tauranga.
We have been developing standardised hatchery protocols and can now consistently produce densely seeded spools and successfully maintain these in the hatchery until the point of outplanting. We have also identified the optimal time to induce spore release in reproductive tissue to maximise spore output, which will reduce the amount of wild harvest required for broodstock collection.
