A research team from Rajshahi University (RU) Fisheries department is working to bring back the abundance of indigenous fishes in Baors.
They also work to introduce sustainable management of Baor fisheries that is hoped to increase fish production in Baors significantly.
The research project is being run by the World Bank (WB) under the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC).
Baors are important inland water resources of the country yielding a fish production of total 7,729.00 metric tonnes annually, 1,408.00 kg/ha on average. In recent years due to various natural and man-made causes, Baors have seen a dramatic decline of indigenous fish species with which they were abundant in the past decades.
These fish species play a vital role in the biodiversity of the Baors and as the source of earnings and micronutrients for the surrounding populations.
If succeeded, they said the project will help establish food security in the country and change the fates of 84,000 people who are directly or indirectly dependent on Baors.
Many small indigenous fish species have been locally extinct or threatened in the Baors because of competition and intervention of aquaculture (use of fertilizers and feeds) and people's excessive eagerness to cultivate various foreign carp species
Most of the Baors brought under culture are now stocked with exotic carp species. This research project is trying to change that picture.
The Co-Principal Investigator of the project Rajshahi University Fisheries department professor Dr Md Yeamin Hossain said, "We are conducting our research in Saganna and Sajrat Baors, both are in Jhenidah district.
We are restocking the two Baors with brood-fishes of eight indigenous fish species and protecting their spawning- and nursery grounds. Samples are being collected every month to measure stocks of different indigenous fishes in the two Baors. Moreover, training programmes for fishers are being arranged to educate them about sustainable fisheries management.
If the project yields tangible results, the government may take initiatives to introduce mass-cultivation of indigenous fishes in all the Baors of the country."
"If the production of indigenous fish species increases, it will help improve the conditions of fishers in Baor areas as consumer preferences are gradually tilting towards the indigenous fishes now.
The few small indigenous species that are being cultured in ponds with commercial feed and chemicals are failing to hold consumer liking due to less taste and the probability of health hazards. Foreign exchange retributions in the economy will also be increased through exportation of these fishes", he added.
Another research team from Jashore University of Science and Technology (JUST) is cooperating in the project by assessing fish diversity index in the Baors. The project was initiated in October this year and is expected to conclude in June, 2022.
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