Restoring giant clams populations in Aitutaki, Cook Islands

A significant number of pa’ua, or giant clams, bred through a Ministry of Marine Resources (MMR) programme have recently been outplanted in Aitutaki, Cook Islands, in an effort to revive local populations of these vital marine animals.

ⒸGCCA+ SUPA

Aitutaki Marine Research Centre (AMRC) manager Richard Story says pa’ua play an important role in lagoon environments as filter feeders by removing algae, plankton, and suspended particles that in turn, improve water quality and thus play an important role in the health of the lagoon and coral.

“There was a huge problem of overharvesting of pa’ua in the Cook Islands,” says Story. “This problem is evident not only in the Cook Islands but throughout the Pacific and other oceans of the world.”

ⒸGCCA+ SUPA

One particular challenge cited by Story is that pa’ua typically start reproducing 5-8 years into their lifecycle, which means a significant population is required to ensure this resource can become sustainable again.

Using new breeding methods, MMR has been able to release an unprecedented number of juvenile pa’ua into the wild, thus potentially increasing the number of outplanted pa’ua that reach adulthood.

This work has benefited from the European Union-funded project Global Climate Change Alliance Plus – Scaling up Pacific Adaptation (GCCA+ SUPA), which began in 2019 and is being implemented by MMR in partnership with the Pacific Community (SPC).

Links

• Restoring giant pa’ua populations in Aitutaki
• GCCA+ SUPA Project 
• GCCA+ SUPA : Learning from the past, preparing for the future – Video