Over the past two years, the research team at the Palau International Coral Reef Center (PICRC) have been sampling melangmud (longnose emperor) as part of a larger project, which looks at the reproductive activity of this species. More recently, this project has expanded to include other key reef species, such as grouper (tiau, mokas, temekai), parrotfish (otord, ngesngis, mesekelat, mellemau), rabbitfish (meyas, kelsebuul, reked), snapper (keremlal), emperor (mechur), and unicornfish/surgeonfish (um, mesekuuk, chesengel).
Fish are purchased from the JR5 fish market, Surangel, BOFI, or independent fishers and brought to PICRC for sampling. The researchers then collect the gonads (reproductive organs) and otoliths (ear bones) and note down the length and weight of the fish. PICRC is also collaborating with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and Coral Reef Research Foundation (CRRF) to gather the otolith samples and to sample species with limited or no information. Samples are sent to the University of Hawai’i and Poseidon Fisheries Research in Hawai’i for processing, with some otolith samples being processed at PICRC.
