KOCHI: Students of schools and colleges and the public will be offered a treat by the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) here enabling them understand the latest developments in the area of marine research. CMFRI will conduct an exhibition-cum-education programme on February 3 as part of celebrating the 70th foundation day of the institute. On the occasion, the public will get an opportunity to visit the marine biodiversity museum, state-of-art laboratories and marine aquarium of the CMFRI.
The museum, which has been given the national repository status by the government, offers a glimpse of the biodiversity of Indian seas. It displays organisms collected from a wide spectrum of niches ranging from estuaries to coastal and deeper waters of the Indian seas. The museum houses 1,137 finfish species, 153 crustaceans, 487 molluscs, 49 echinoderms, 198 corals and sponges, 91 seaweeds and 233 various other specimens which make a total collection of 2351.
The collections have been serving as reference material for scientists across the globe to confirm the identity of species collected by them. Species new to science (Holotype) includes fishes, corals, sponges, bryozoans and gastrotriches. Museum displays rare collections such as the Anterctic krills, horse shoe crab, sea snakes, sea birds, pearl oyster, sea cow, sharks, penguin and dolphins.
Visitors will have the chance to watch and observe the marine species in addition to acquire knowledge in connection with aquarium keeping, ornamental fish culture, cage fish farming and latest test technologies in fisheries. The marine aquarium, which offers a display of diverse aquatic species in the sea, is also a major attraction. Various technologies related to marine capture and culture fisheries have been portrayed in the Agricultural Technology Information Centre (ATIC) of CMFRI. This will give an insight into technologies coming out of different laboratories in CMFRI.
Laboratories related to fish aging, molecular biology, bioprospecting, cell culture, fishery biology, environmental research, climate change and ocean acidification will be showcased to the public during the programme. CMFRI director Dr A. Gopalakrishnan said visitors would be given the opportunity to interact with the scientists and researchers regarding ongoing projects on various aspects of marine fisheries. Various models of ecosystem-friendly approaches towards fisheries management would be demonstrated at the institute, he said. Entry to the expo will be free, he said.
