LIPI TEAM RESEARCHING KURAU FISH AROUND BENGKALIS ISLAND

Pekanbaru, Riau, Nov 1 (ANTARA) - A group of 10 researchers from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI)'s Oceanography Center are currently conducting research on Kurau fish, a coral fish species of high economic value, in waters around Bengkalis Island, Riau province.
"The LIPI researhers team arrived here to study the biological and ecological condistions of Kurau fish in the region," Bengkalis District Chief H. Syamsurizal said here Saturday.
He said the purpose of the research effort led by Prof. Asakin Djamali was to determine the possibility of cultivating Kurau fish.
Syamsurizal said the Bengkalis regional government strongly supported the research project of LIPI's Oceanography Center because the biological and ecological conditions of Kurau fish in Bengkalis waters had never been researched before.
Based on the research results, LIPI would dig deeper into the possibility of cultivating the fish species that had a high market value.
"We hope this research will help us to know whether it is possible to cultivate Kurau fish. If it is, the local marine and fisheries office will take action to initiate a Kurau cultivation pilot project," he said.
Kurau fish is much sought after by fishermen in Bengkalis which is an outlying island on the edge of the Malacca Strait. The fish has a high economic value because of its delicious taste and saleable to foreign fishermen.