,CRlIlS!: RI:PORT NO. 38

or 1'1:/SI.ltl/'I'-l

20 September 1980

.SOLOMON ISLANDS OFFSHORE SURVEY

Cruise 51-79(3)

10 Octoher - 25 November 1979

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~!~arcu for: ~ ~~_;~ C(~_I!~J_h~~t_I(),!.I__!2':

CClt1MITTF.F FOR CO-ORDINATION 01: liND!' Pr-o iec t Offiv('

.rourr PIWSPLCTINC FOR MINLRAI. I'nlJl'l't HI\S/79jU]4

RESOURCES IN SOOTH PACIFIC Invest igat ion of Mi ne r a 1

OFFSIIOOT: ARLI\S (CCOPjSOPAC) I'ot on t Ia I of t he SOUl h

WORK PR<X;RAMMI: CCS 1'-1 IS J .14 I'uc i tIL'

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'-:OLClvtON ISIJ\NIIS IlI:FS\lIlI{1 ~;lIl(VIY ('1(1I1~;1 I(ll'llln Nil, 'ik

10 Oct oho r - 2!j Novumho r 1~)'/~1 of 1'I:jSI.ltl/'1-1

Cruise SI-79(3)

I NTROUUC'I' I ON AND BAC KGIWUNll

This crui s e was und e rt ukcn as part of CCOPjSOPACWork Programme

CCSPjSl. 14 (The potential of precious corals, especially Corallium species,

in the Solomon Islands).

In l u t o 1~17!l··l'al'ly 1~17h rr;I~lIIl'nt~; of VI..'llico rn l were rcp o r t cd 1'1'0111

several localities in the Solomon Islands bya Japanese company, Takuho

l.r cs i Ltd. The 212 month SUI'VCY ('I'ahl(~ I) was c a r r ied out with Solomon

Island government permission and was monitored by the risheries Ilivision

of the Natural Resources Department. The company did not present a report

on the survey but Fisheries Division officers participating in the survey

kept notes on the work done. The results of the positive hauls made during

.this survey, as recorded by the officers' notes, are included in this report

(see Fig. 2, Tahle 7). The results were' .rppn rr-nr l y c ons idc rcd un fnv ou rab l c

as the company showed no interest in continuing after working in So l omon

Islands for 2~ months.

In J97H a review was made of the Solomon Islands work programme In

CCOPjSOPM: and a precious 1gem) coral project was formulated at the request

of Fisheries Division, Solomon Islands.

The target of this project is "to establish whether there is sufficient

Corallium in Solomon Island waters on which to base a precious coral industry".

The first detailed su r vey to be c a rr ied out JOintly by Fisheries

Oivision anJ CCOl'jSOI'!\C was p lanru-d for 1979. This rcp o rt des c r ihe s the

results of that survey.

CRUISE OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this cruise were to examine as many potential sites

as possible for deep wat e r p rec ious corals in the main island chain (New

Georgia to Makira), to establish the d is t r ibur ion of t.:~)ral!~~ species, to

collect samples for resource evaluation and ec hos ound ings and bottom photos

for site evaluation.

•

I

PERSONNELPARTIe IPATINt;

Fisheries Division, Honiara:

Mr D Gibson, Senior Fisheries Officer - Fisheries Liaison

Mr J Lamia Voda , Fi sheri es Ass i s t ant and Counterpart Trainee

Mr D Otto, Fisher"ics I:ngincer

Mr N l~ramana, Assistant

Mr M Seth, Assistant

Geology Division, Honiara:

Mr N Pule, Geology Assistant

CCOP/SOPAC Technical Secretariat, Suva

Mr.J hide, lJNIlP Marine (;eologist Scientific Lc.ule r

EQUIPMENTAND FACILITIES

Magnavox MXJI12 Sa t c l ! i tr- NavIgat.or with printer;•

Raytheon I'TR Transceiver and ~.7/7.() 'l'rans duc c r ;

EPC 4600 Recorder;

Benthos Underwater camera and flash;

Coral Net Dredges;

Sextant;

Hand-he ld compass;

Hydroproducts portable oceanographic winch.

Navigation (posi tion fixing and t rack plotting) was carried out by the

scientific team, primarily by the scientific leader and counterpart trainee,

with assistance from the ships bosun. Three methods were used.

1) Horizontal sextant angles and plotting using a three arm compass,

This provided the most ac cu ra t c- navigation hut vou ld only he used

when three recognizable features on land were visible.

2) Magnetic bearings using hand held compass. A minimum of 2 hearings

will give a fix. lIowever, this method was often not. accurate enough

for the de t a i led surveying which was carried out.

3) Satellite fixes and DR positions from the Magnavox MXll12 Satellite

Navigator. This proved most useful at all times, It provided a

useful suppl cmcnt to the lio r izonta I scx t ant and was often rc lied

:)

upon entirely where the c oas t was too distant or obscured hy mist

or rain. '

Radar, not available for this survey, would have been extremely useful

at all times.

All positions were plotted on either British Admiralty Charts at scale..I :250,000 or topographic maps .rt scale I: ISO,OOO pub l i shcd hy Su rv ey Division,

Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, So l oinon Is lands. The l a rge r scale maps

p ro ved to he the ho t t c r workillg sl'ale,

Dr'edg ing» were lIIade us i II).: I rad i t i ona I ,J'l\l,IIll'Sl', 'l'a iwancs c alld Ok i nawan

co ra Li ng nets. Although several variations were experimented with, it was

found that the simplest gear' was the 1I10st effective. The gear used cons is t cd

of a single large (2()-~()kgl ov a l river boulder, ellcased in strong w i r e with

scve rn l (tl-H) hands of mul t i ri l auu-n t ny lon ne-t ("salilloll 1Il't"with mes h Sl/.l' •

about 212 inch s t r ct.r hcd ) a t t uchc d to the hou lclc r . I\s ·the gear is dr;lgged

over the bottom - almost always with the vessel drifting with wind and

eurrent - the boulder breaks the coral off the bottom and the nets streaming

out behind gather it up. A compa rison of the amount of cora 1 recovered with

the amount seen in bottom photographs strongly suggests this method is very

efficient in collecting representative samples.

IPRELiMINARY RESULTS 1

[

Ar-cus c ons idc rcd for' surveying (Fig. I) and s i t e s within those areas

were chosen from existing depth information. In this report an "area" is a ;

geographically distinct region whc re there arc one or more likely sites for

Corallium occurrence. A "s it e " is dc fi ncd as a hank, seamount or high feature

where, if conditions are favourable, a bed of Corallium or other precious coral

may occur.

Most areas and sites were chosen from a study of British Admira lr y

navigation charts BA 214, BI\ 1469, BA 2975, BA 3402, BA 3403, BA 3404,BA :')412,BA 3416, and BA 3419, These charts COVl'r the western, ccnt r a l and

eastern islands. Samp l i ng III the eastern outer Islands (Santa Cruz) and the

sout hern islands [Re nne Ll and Bellona) was not considered for this survey.

During the survey h7 stat lOllS were uc cup i c-d a t 2H sites in 12 a r cu s (t'ub Ic 2),

Because of fuel and water capuc ity on t he Ka.1ALIAFthe out of port time was

limited to no more than 8 days. Six trips to sea were made during the 8 week

j • ' ,···-~·"'I·~-'<~---'··..-.• ·,-··-

..

4

cha r t o r with 4 port cal Is to llon iu ru and one to (;izo {Table 3). Thirty four

fu II worki ng days were ach I e ved and an average of 1.2 days was spent surveying

each site.

Lach site was su rvcyc.I according to the following plan:

I) Several lines of ccho sound ings were made across the site to

establish the general bathymetric shape; echo soundings also

give an ind ic at iou of bottom type i.e. rocky or sediment covered

seafloor;

2) IJredgillgs WI'l'e 1\I;11!l' III t hos « pLll'es whel'l' rocky sea ('1001', ;IS s e cn

on the erho s ouud injrs , lay within optimum depth limits for C.O.I·:I}_!.~_U!11;

:q I:illally, uudo rw.rt e r pho t ug r aphy WdS us cd to check those loca l i t ies

where corals were found typical of hard bottom areas and known to be

associated wi th ~oral1i~IE.1. Photographs show the nat u re of the sea

floor in detail and in conjunction with dredge samples pr.ovide

useful information on coral density thereby quantifying results to• some degree.

Material Co l l cc t cd : Identifications have been made by Dr R (;rigg,

Uni vcrs i.ty of Hawai i .

liard bottom (ut t uchcd I corals were co l l ccr ed at 4R stations some of

which are listed in 'l'ah lc 1\. Appro x imat e l y IX slH'~'ies were collected. They

range from the soft chitinous corals, to chitinous corals with a calcareous

outer layer to purely calcareous species'.

The most common forms ~'Ol l ev t cd that i ndi c at e a f'avour ab l e env ironment

for Corallium occurrence i nc ludc calcareous hy dr oc o r a ls (Stylaster sp . ,

~~_e-,-,?.E~-!...~.Clsp . , and C.lJ'£.t~~_!J_a s p . }, the de nd ro phy t l id co r a l r:n~~:?~J~E.rl~~ sp.

and non-r ouuucrc ia I gorgonian co ra l s C_alypt!:orllO~_ sp., ~J11ogorgia sp.,

Keroeides mosaica and Narella sp.

Corallium was recovered at 14 stat ions and hard bottom found at another

:~4 stations. Four species of C.<?!:,aJ..lj~~_were found (Fig. 2., Table 5).

5

1. Cora1lium konoj oi Kishinouye~ono12~. occurs at 2 stations off Mur-au at depths of 263-382m.Although two specimens of commercial grade were collected theyare relatively low in value since the skeleton is white. Allspec i mens WCI'C l i v i ng when c o l l e c t ed •

2. Corallium elatius Ridley?

C. elatius is the pink commercial species. The largest specimencollected, probably C. elatius , is of good quality but was deadwhen collected. This species was found at 345-480m off 'NorthMalai t a and Northwest Ma laitao

3. Corallium sp. d.

This species was found at one station at depths 18i-205m near NuraIsland. The three specimens were living when collected and arecharacterised by excellent colour - an even, medium red. However,the largest, about 5mm in diameter, is too small to be commercial .

•4. Corallium sp. e.

This species occurs at 10 stations at depths 219-380 off westVella Lavella, Ndai, north Malaita, Marau and north Makira. Itconsists of several "arms" radiating in a cup-like arrangement froma short basal stem. The largest specimen is no more than 30mm high,has a maximum sprea~ of about 80mm and a maximum diameter of 7.5mm.Most specimens were living when collected. On drying, thesespecimens have a characteristic thin chalky covering which is a creamy-white on the inne r part of the branches and a pinky-orange at theirouter ends, especially around the polyp cups. Underneath the chalkyouter covering the branches are dense, hard and a very pale pink incolour. The commercial significance of this species is limited byit'Ssmall size.

The only other coral collected of possible commercial interest is bamboocoral. A few very small specimens were collected at three localities offMarau and north Maki ra.

Site Evaluation: Sites were evaluated for their potential for gem coraloccurrence, primarily Coralh urnspecies. Most important parameters contro lling

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l~or.~ium distribution are: depth, s c a floor character and water movement.

Optimum depth range is thought to he 20()-:5S0m. Si t cs where depths are

between 180m and SODm wen' considered pot ent i a l l y t'nvou r ab l e and wc rc examined.

The sea floor must be sediment free. Rocky bottom is a primary. req~ire-

ment as an attachment surface fOI' t he cora I "t rees". The character of the

sea floor can be interpreted f r om echo soundings, dredged material and under-

wat er phot og rriphs .

Moderate to strong bottom c ur rcnt s are also a requirement for C_oyallium

occurrence. Not only do they keep the sea floor fr-cc of scd imcnt hut also

i.nc r eus e the potential supply of food to the un imu l .

Flatter parts of the s c a floor are preferred as search areas hecause

they arc easier to dredge. Also, as they are larger, they automatically

offer the chance of finding larger heds of pr cc ious coral than would he

found on steep slopes. 'l'e r rnc c s , the tops or ridges, seamounts or b.mk s

01' flat .i rcus ho twucn islands ;IIT the mos t likely p l ac e s to Ii nd ·COI·;J1liulII,. .,.- .-.-- _ .. _._.-cspcc ia l ly in conunc rc iu l quan t i t i cs .

Site Descriptions:

N VI:L1J\ IJ\VLLLA lrigs. 3 and 4)

Si._te A: Part of an irregular ridge lying approximately north-south

10 n.mi. (naut i cu l miles) West of Vella l.av e l l a . At this site, on its

northern part, the ridge rises to depths of 300-35001. Rocky outcrops and

sediment covered sea floor arc equally common. The rock, probably limestone,

is most ly smooth surfaced and f rcc of any sed i mcnt . Few cora Is appe a I' on the

rocky surfaces in bottom pho t.og ruphs . Several hard bottom corals were dredged

including ~.o.!~.!]'.Lu~ sp. e.

Site B: On the southern pa r t of the same ridge as site A. Depths at

this site are between :~()()III.uul 400m. Flat a rcas predominate, p rohnb l y all. are

sediment covered. Some hn rd bo t t om co r a l s were collected, but no COI';)..!Jillll~.

SIMBO (Fig. 5)

Sit<:...~: A deep water saddle lies between Ranongga and Si mho Islands.

Strong current; sweep across this saddle but water depths are mostly in excess

of lOOOm, too deep for Cor~i-'2..i~l!n. Slope:.; off the two is lands are steep and

covered with rubble,

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Site B: A rocky ridge extends south from the southern end of Si mbo.

Slopes are mostly very steep and the t.oP of ridge is very narrow. Strong

winds made dredging difficult here and no sample was collected.

TETEPARE (Fi gs , hand 7)

An Ir regu Iu r surfaced t o r r ac c Iics south of the easter,;,. end of 'l'et epure .

Three sites were examined on this terrace.

Site A: Close to 'l'c t cpu rc (1-2 lI.mi.) the te r r acc lies at 200-300111.

Echos ound ings suggest both rocky and sed imerit covered seafloor. Moderate ly

strong bottom currents may be present as suggested by rocky bottom and

moderate ly strong surface current s ,

Site 13: On the sout.hc rn part of the t c r r ac c ;1 lar"ge (4 n i mi . hy 2 n.mL)

moderately flat area lies at 300-450m. Here the sea floor is both rocky and

sediment covered.

Site C: West of sites f\ and B the terrace narrows off the southern

coast of Tetepare. A small rocky ridge lies on the terrace and parallel to

-Te t ep ar e Island. Other parts of the terrace here arc sediment covered.

Si tes A, B and C: Rocky areas do occur but apparent ly are small in

arca and scattered over the terrace. Strong winds mad e drcd g ing difficult:

No coral was ruco vc rcd frum uny s i t e p rohub ly ind i cat ing that ou ly the

sediment covered area~ were dredged. I

RUSSELLS (Fig. 8)

Site A: A ridge extends west from Monolun and Alokun islands. At

depths 200-300m the bottom is rocky and hard bottom corals were collected.

Deeper, at 300-400m the ridge flattens to a terrace-like feature. lIere the

bottom is mostly sediment covered but some rocky areas are present. Gem

coral fragments were. collected at this site by the Takuho Eresi survey.

Site B·: A terrace lies south of Monolun Island. At 300-400m the

terrace is mostly rocky with some sediment cover. A rocky "high" on this

terrace was dredged but as the gear snagged on the bottom no sample was

collected.

Site C: West of sites A'\and B there is a hroad bank which rises to

130m at a position about 20 n.mi. west of Monolun Island. Site C lies on

i{

the east side of this bank where there is a broad terrace at 350-400m.

Shallower rocky patches lie on this terrace which is mostly sediment covered.

At one station (47) the Vt'SSt'l WilS anchored with the dredge which was

subsequent ly lost. At the other (4K) only sediment covered sea floor was

dredged.

Site 0: A large hr oud hank I ie s approximately 20 n.mi. sour hwest of

Mono lun Island. Depths less than 200m do occur but a large part of the bank

lies at 250-400m. Many rocky patches occur, separated by large areas of flat

sediment covered sea floor. In bottom photographs the rocky area photo-

graphed is vc ry clean and free of sediment suggesting moderate to strong

bottom currents .. Most of the a rc a looks flat hut small ve ry steep slopes

can be seen in some photographs. liard bottom corals were collected hut no

Corallium was found in the one dredging. Very few corals can be seen in the

bottom photographs.

WEST(;UADALCANAL(Fi g. 9)

Although strong currents may occur in this area between Guadalcanal

and Russe 11 Is lands no sui tab le rocky bottom at 200-500m was found. No

dredgings were made.

NOM (Figs. 10 and 11)

~ite~: Off the north CO,lSt of Ndai Island the scn fIoo r drops steeply

to depths gr'cater' t han SOOm, A dredgi Ilg here con ti rnu-.l that reef I imes t onc

rubble covers most of this slope.

Site B: South of Nda i Island there is a hroad ridge connecting the

island with North Malaita. lwo banks on this ridge near Ndai were examined.

At site B, 2 n i mi . south east of Ndai rocky outcrops and sediment covered

seafloor were found. Most of the sitc is flat with small steep slopes only

in the rocky area. At one station (36) a large rocky arcia was dredged and

~orallium sp. e. recovered. Depths investigated were 200m to 350m.

Site C: Another' hank on the sumo r'idge as site B was investigated.

This si te, about 5 n.mi. southeast of Ndai, did not appear as promising as

S1t e B. Few rocky patches were found, the sea floor be ing most ly s ed iment

covered. Although a small hou ld c r was rcc ovc red in the onc d rcdg ing made,

no coral was collected.

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NORTII~1ALAITA (F igs, I.' and I 3)

_~it~_A: A laq~l' b ro nd 1>;111" Ill'S .rpp ro x i mnt c ly 10 n.mi. no rr h orMlIlaita on the Noai-Malaita r i.dgc . The top of the bank lies at 11m, too

shallow for gem c o ru l . However', the h.mk s lopes gent ly north and rocky areas

were found on this slope between 250m and 450m, especially on the northwest.

slopes. Six s t at i ons were oc cup i ed on the northwest slopes of vt hi s bank.

Two camera stations (40, 60) showed both rocky and sediment areas to be

common . At station ()O the hottom is vc ry irregular and no s t ly rocky. The

rock is free of s ed iment indicating modc rat e to strong bottom currents.

Small corals can be seen in some photos, others contain no sign of -Li f e . Of

fou r d r edg i ngs , two (39, (JI) con t n i ncd C_O_~!~}J_i_lI~ sp. c. Com co ra l W;IS also

collected here by Takuho lirc s i Ltd ('IT. 4H). Two d r edgi.ng s were made on the

northeastern slopes of the bank. Although hard bottom coral was collected

at one station, few rocky areas were found and the slopes appear to he mostly

covered with sediment.

Site B: Between site A a nd Mal a i t a Island there is a hank which rises_._---to 170m. Five dredgings and one camera station were made on the slopes of

this bank. Underwater' photographs show ;1 roc ky bottom with large u r-ca s of

sediment cover. The rock su r tac e is free of sediment and sediment areas

are mostly gravel and coarse sand. Few steep slopes are present and rocky

areas arc mostly flat to gently sloping. Some small corals can be seen in

the photographs. Of the five dredgings, two (30, 62) recovered Cora l li um.

Two species were f'ound , ~:~I':'!Li~I~? and C. sp. e. All specimens, though

small, were living when collected.

NWMALAITA(Figs, 14 and 15)

Site A: A deep gap' off the western corner of North Mul ui t u separates

North Mal a i t a from a large shallow "shelf" which ext ends cast from the southern

end of Santa Isabel. The western sloe of this gap was surveyed but only steep,

rubb Ie-covered s lopes were f ound at depths 200-500m. No 0 redgi ngs were made.

Site~: Approximately 15 n i mi . off the western coast of North ~lalaita

the seafloor rises steeply Irom depths grl';lter" than 1200m to a pcuk at about

150m. The feature, a short na r row r idg c , was found to he most ly rocky. Some

small flat areas on the ridge crest arc sediment covered. Photographs of the

ridge slopes show the rocky areas at the depths pho t og rnphud , 370-420m, arc

covered with a very thin layer of fine sediment. Of two dredgings made on

sha llower parts of this ridge, one recovered ha rd bottom co ra 1. Takuho Eresi

Ltd collected promising pieces of gem coral at this site at IHOmwater depth.

10

Site C: This site lies approximately 5 n.mi. west of the east coast

of North Malaita. As at site B, the site here is on a narrow, steep sided

ridge. Higher parts of this ridge are mostly rocky. Corallium elatius ?

was collected in the shallowest (3RS-480m) of three dredgings. This sample (44)

contained the largest amount of ha rd bottom co ra l . The dcud rophy l l id coral.

EnalloEsammia sp. is particularly abundant at this station.

NURA (Figs. 16 and 17)

Sitc~: A r idge extends southeast from Rua Sura Island towards Nura

Island. The top of this ridge at 2S0-300m is flat and covered with sediment.

Some hard bottom corals occur on rocky patches on the northern side of this

ridge, however slopes arc steep.

Site B: A rugged, rocky ridge extends southeast from Nura Island for

a distance of at least 7 n.mi. Echosoundings show large. rocky areas on both

gentle and steeper sloping parts of the ridge. ~_or':l.!-l.!.~l!lsp. d. was collected

in one of fi ve dredgi ngs made (Stat ion 9). Gem coru I 'was a Iso co l Lcc t ed by

Takuho EresiLtd who report fragments from seven stations at depths between

f80m and 300m.

MARAU(Figs. ]8 and 19)

A terrace lies southeast of the eastern end of Gundu lv nnal at Marau

Sound. The terrace surface ILl'S at 225-350m and is most ly fl at and smooth.

Photographs taken at one station (27) show a flat sediment covered sea floor

with small rocky patches. The sediment cover over rocky bottom appears very

thin in places. Small corals occur on most rocky patches. Although rocky

patches are very small. corals are more common in these bottom photographs

than in others taken at other sites. Corallium specimens (C. konoJoi and

~. sp. e.) were collected at 4 of the 11 dredge stations. At St at ion 25. a

piece of C. konojoi with live polyps was collected. This is of commercial

grade but is without colour (white). Currents appear to be particularly strong

at this s i t e .. Winds from the southeast and currents from the northeast produce

a drift. often quite fast, to the west.

SOUTHMALAlTA(Figs. 20 and 21)

Site A: A nar r ow, steep-sided ridge extends southeast f r om Sulu pa l a

Point. Rocky bottom was dredged at lBO-220m and 2SS-275m. No coral was

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II

collected. No large flat areas were found and slopes are very steep.

S~: The seafloor off Niahuh a I'q int was exami ned. S lopes are very

steep and most covered with sediment. No suitable dredging sites were found

and no dredgings were made.

NORTHMAKIRA(Figs, 22 ;lllli',) j

Site A: A ridge extends north of PLo Island. Most slopes are steep

and rocky. Hard bottom cora I was dredged from 285-44810 at the one station

oc cup icd , No ~.~.~.E'.l_I]..i.~l\ was founcl .

'Site B: In the saddle between Uki Island and Makira there is a----moderately flat terrace-like area with depths at 2S0-400m. Much of the

surface of this terr-ace is rorky hut a rcus of sediment do occur. Corallium

was found at two of the S stat ion s dredged. Tidal currents are very strong

in this area especially close to Uki Island.

Site C: The seafloor south of Malaupaina Island slopes steeply to

Jeep water «500m). The one place where gem coral may occur is steep and

.,small in area. Hard bottom cora] but no~.?!~0}iu~ was found at this site ...

A fu l I list of station det a i l s is given in Table 6. Also, a list of

positive hauls made during the Takuho Eresi Survey 1975-76 is given in

Table 7.

CONCLUSIONS ANDRECOMMENDATIONS

The areas examined (Fig. 1) are considered the most likely areas where

C~)_I.yllium may occur in t hc Solomon Islands, between Sho r t land Is l and s and

Makira. Corallium occur-s throughout this area (Fig. 2, Tables 4 and 5), but

appears to be more common in that area from Ndai Island, through Ind i spens ib l e

St r ait, to Marau Sound. The potent) a I for the occurrence of commercial

quantities of precious coral is greatest in the Indispensible Strait area

between Ndai Is land and Marau. The fo 110wing were collected from this

area.

One specimen of ~konot~_, collected l iving , is of commercial grade

but being white is of relatively low value. Another specimen, probably

C:..-_<::..l..:!tius,is of conune rc i u l grade (size and colour) but as it was dead when

collected it is not commercial. S:yrallium sp. d. has excellent colour but

none of the three specimens collected are large enough to be commercial.

12

The existence of these specimens, the pl'eSI'IH'l' of s cvc r a l go rgoni a ns

and one de nd rophy l l id frequently found ill as so c i at ion with Corallium and

the favourable nature of many sites as <e en from ec hosound ings and underwater

photographs, indicate that the precious coral potential of the Solomon Islands

is very promising.

..This survey, which complcted a reconnaissance study of t'he main

islands chain, needs to be followed hy det a i led surveys of specific sites.

Not all the 28 sites surveyed walT;lnt Fu r t he r s tudy and some sites clearly shou ld

have preference over others. Therefore, sites have he en graded into three

categories according to their potential and desirability for further study.

Category 1: Sites wherc <!)J"a~l!~~n occurs and all conditions (bottom

type and currents) are known to he favou rub lc . These arc the most likely sites

to find commercial heds of (~~?~_~~IJ~t.!:!.Iand the rc fo r-e should he given priori ty for

further study. They include the following:

Vc l ln l.a vc l La ~;itl' 1\

Ndui Site B•

North Malaita Site 1\

North Malaita Site BNorthwest Mu la i t a Si t c B

Northwest Malaita Site CNura Site B

Marau

North Makira Site B

Category 2: Sites where hard bottom corals occur and where conditions

are favourable for Corallium. These sites generally do not "look" as good as

Category 1 sites and are therefore regarded not as promising. Some sites

may prove to have bet t c r potential after further survey work. At most of

these sites no strong cu r reu t s Wl'l"Cdct cct cd . 'l'h cy inc lude till' following:

Tetepare Site A

Tetepare Site B

Russells Site A

Russells Site B

Russells Site CRus s e 115 Si t e n

Ndai Site C

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Category 3: Sites where bottom conditions for Coral1ium areunfavourub le or where, due to very steep s Iopes , very few specimens mayoccur. This survey suggests that no fu rt he r survey work is warranted atthese sites. They include the following:

Vella Lavella Site BSimho Site A .Sirnbo Site BTetepare Site CWest GuadalcanalNdai Site ANorthwest Malaita Site ANura Site ASouth Malaita Site ASouth Ma laita Site BNorth Makira Site ANorth Makira Site C

~ORK REMAI N ING '

Detai led surveys of Category 1 sites need to be carried out. Eachsite requires further echosounding, dredging and underwater photography.At least 4 days should be spent on each site and at least 15 dredgings made.Following field identifications and sorting of material, a selection ofCorallium collected should be sent to a competent consultant for evaluationof its commercial potential.

NCYI'E: Two sets of phot.og raphs from the stations where bottom photographswere successfully taken have been assembled. One is lodged withthe Chief Fisheries Officer, Honiara and the other with theCCOPjSOPAC Technical Secretariat, Suva.

APPEND IX I

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FIGURES 1-23

. • TABLES 1-7

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!i\13L10.: Takuho l.r csi l.td Survey. Nov. Dec. .Jan . Feb. 1975-1976

Programme Summary

Days Stns Positive Haul~

Trip 1 New Georgi a 4 15 2

Rus s e lIs

Trip 2 Nura, North Maki ra 6 21 2

Last Makira

Trip 3 North Malaita, Ndai 8 21 6

Isabe I

-rrip 4 W Guada l.cana l , Nura 3 16 5

Trip 5 W Guadalcanal 2 6 -

Trip 6 Short 1anus 9 - -

-- --- --Totals: 32 79 15

--- -- --

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TABLE 2: Survey Summary for each area

No. of Sites No. of Dredgings No. of days'

1. W Vella Lavella 2 2 . 2

2. Simbo 2 1 1

3. Tetepare 3 3 2

4. Russells 4 6 3

5. W Guadalcanal 1 - 2

6. Ndai 3 4 l~

7. N Malaita '2 11 " 4~•

8. NW Malaita 3 5 5

9. Nura 2 7 3

10. Marau 1 11 4

11. S Malaita 2 2 1

12. N Makira 3 7 ' 4-- -- -

28 59 33-- -- -,-.-

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TABLE 3: Fisheries Division CCOP/SOPAC Survey SI-79(3)

October, November 1979

Programme Summary"

Day5 Dredge Stations Positive Hauls(Cdrallium) .

Trip 1 Marau, Nara 7 11 2'

';11':. Trip 2 North Mari_ka,South 8 16 5Malaita, Marau

Trip 3 Ndai, No~th Malaita 8 13 ' 4Northwest Malaita

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Trip 4 South Russells, West 5 6 -Guadalcanal

Trip 5 Tetepare, Simbo 5 4 ~~

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Trip 6 W Vel)a Lavella, North 6 9 3Malaita, Northwest :Malaita

-- - --,Totals: 39 59 14

-- - -

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TABLE 6: SI-79(3) Station List

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TABLE 7: Takuho Eresi Ltd Survey Station List.

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APPENDIXII

NARRATIVE

Preliminary planning for survey SI-79(3) was carried out during a

visit to Honiara by Mr J Eade 13-18 .June 197.9. The vessel to he charteted

for the survey was inspected, equi pment required w.as listed and a progranune

formulated. The survey was to be under the overall supervision of Mr 0

Gibson, led by Mr ,J Lade, and a Fisheries Assistant who would be t rained in

all aspects of conducting such a survey. The survey was planned for

October-November 1979.

Mr Eade arrived in Honiara on 30 September with the project's echo-

sounder, satellite navigator, underwater camera and other items.

1-5 October: Project equipment installed on charter vessel

K().1ALIAl:. This included mounting the oceanographic

winl.:h on the forward deck, the transducer to the star-

• board side and satellite navigator and echo-sounder

recorder and transceiver on a bench in the saloon.

The underwl.ltcr caQlera was unpacked and assembled.

Coral net dredges were made up using large river

boulders and two inch mesh salmon netting.

6 October: To sea for the day to test equipment.

8-10 Oet obe r : In Honi aru , final installations and preparations for

sea. .

10-16 October: At sea, surveying off Marau and Nura, 11 stations

occupied (1-11) ..

17 October: In Honiara, refuel and reprovision.

18-25 October: At sea, surveying off North Makira, South Malaita

and Marau, 17 stations occupied (12-28).

26-27 October: In Honiara, refuel and reprovision.

28 October-4 November: At sea, off Ndai, North Malai t a and Northwest

Malaita, 1b stations occupied (29-44).

5, 6 November: In Honiara, refuel and reprovision.·

7-11 November: At sea, off south Russell Islands and West

Guada Ic ana 1, 7 st ations occupied (45-51).

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12-13 November: In Honiara, refuel and reprovision.14-18 November: At sea, off Tetepare and Simbo Islands, 4

statIons occupiod (52-55)., 19 November: In Gizo , refuel and reprovision. ;,

20-25 November: At sea, surveying off VoIla Lavella, NorthMalaita and Northwest Malaita, 12 stations occupied(56-67).

26 November-! December: Unload K<J.1ALIAE,pack up equipment andarrange airfreight to Suva. Review data coll~ctedand plan timetable for report preparation.

3 December: Eade travels Honiara to Suva., .

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APPENDIX III

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Report on prepa r-at.r ons made for gem coral survey

SI-79(3) (CCUP/SOPAC Proj ec t SI.14)

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NOTES FRa.1 A VISIT TO HONIARA 13-18 JUNE, 1979, BYJ V EAIlE.TALKS WITH MR 0 GIBSON, SENIOR FISHERIES OFFICER,(MANAGEMENT)CCOP/SOPAC PROJECT Sl.14

During a vi~it to Honiara by Mr Eade in August 1978, the SolomonIsland CCOP/SOPAC work programme was reviewed. During discussions with~r R James, Chief Fisheries Officer, it was decided to plan for a com-prehensive survey of' pink coral resources in Solomon Island waters. Thissurvey would follow on from the incomplete and rather unsatisfactory. surveycarried out by a private group in 1975-1976. A new fisheries researchvessel, due to arrive in Honiara from the United Kingdom in June 1979, wasprogrammed to carry out the work. This vessel was to be involved in thiswork for a 6 month period. The CCOP/SOPAC 'l'ec hn ica 1 Secretariat agreed toprovid~ a geologist to organize the survey and lead it for at least thefirst 'two months. The'Technical Secretariat would also provide most of th~equipment needed. Fisheries Division would provide a counterpart person

'w~0'wou1d be trained to lead the project after the geologist leaves, and otherpeople to assist with the survey work. Other general backup services wouldbe provided by Fisheries Division.

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This programme was presented at and accepted by CCOP/SOPACat its.Seventh Session in Wellington during October 1978.

In 1979, it became obvious that the new research vessel would not bearriving in the Solomons during 1979 as planned and its arrival date was .-delayed until early 1980.

At MrJames suggestion, the survey was postponed until October 1979when'a charter vessel could be used to instigate the programme prior to thenew vessel's arrival. Therefore, Mr Eade was requested to visit Honiara inJune to sort out the final detailS of the October~November 1979 survey.

On the 14th and 15th of June, 1979 Mr Eade and Mr D Gi.bscn , SeniorFisheries Officer (Management) inspected the ves se 1 to be chartered and

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formulated a programme for the survey. The timetable agreed upon is asfollows:

End of July: Project winch shipped to 1I0niara;

End of September: Project equipment airfreighted to Honia1'a;

30 September: Eade travels from Suva to JIDniara;

1-3 October: Equipment collected, unpacked and set up on chartervessel;

4 October: Testing equipment;

5 October: .Survey begins;

26 November: Survey ends;

26-27 November: Unload charter vessel;

28-30 'November: Clean, pack and airfreight equipment to Suva;

3-7 December: Sort sumples, commence plotting data. write cruisereport;

10 December: Eade travels 1I0niara to Suva .•

Full details of the project's operation are attached .

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DETA ILS OF TWO MONTH PREC 1000S CORAL SURVEY. IN THE SOLOMON ISLANDS, OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER

1979

Personnel:Liaison Officer: Mr D Gibson, Senior Fisheries Officer, HoniaraScientific Leader: Mr.J V liad e , UNDP Marine Geologist, SuvaTrainee Leader: Fi.s he ri es Assistant, HoniaraOther Personnel: At least 2 other assistants from Fisheries or

'Geology bivisions, Honiara

Vessel:

M .V. KG1ALIAETo be chartered by Solomon IsIands Government for 57 days.UNDP wi 11 assist the Government by paying for running costs.

Specifications:

Length: 62ft.• Breadth: 15ft.

Depth: 10ft.Gross tonnage: 70 ,Fuel capacity: 780 galls.Twin' engine diesel capable of about 8 knots.Carries a crew of at least S.Cabin space for 6 passengers.Licensed for inner is land and coastal voyages.Voltage supply: 240v. ;

The KOMALIAE is a former copra boat which has been converted into ageneral purpose boat capable of a variety of charter work .. It isquite suitable for precious coral surveys.

Charter Period:

2 October to 27 November inclusive.

Area to be studied:

Primary area identified as east, west and north of Malaita, northSanta Cristabel, south of New Georgia.

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Survey Plan:

Periods of 5-7 days will be spent at sea. Where possible operations

wi 11 be carried out 24 hours per day WIth d redg ing operations and

underwater photography being c a r r i ed out primari ly during daylight

hours and echosounding at night. If work ing c lose to reefs then it

may be necessary to anchor at night. One or two nights will be spent

in port between survey periods to refuel and reprovision. Initially J

the K(J\1ALIAEwill work out of Honiara.

Navigation:

Horizontal sextant, compass bearings and Satellite Navigation.

Primary Operations:

Echosounding

Coral net dredging

Underwater photography

Equipment and supplies:•

1. Provided by CCOP/SOPAC

Oceanographic winch with wire

Portable echosounder (Raytheon)

Underwater camera (Benthos) with pingel'

Satellite navigator

Sextant

Coral tangle nets

Metre block

Charts'

Transformer

2. Provided by Fi shc ri c s Division

Vessel

Stones f or coral nets

Tool Kit

Petrol for winch

Sampl e containers and p rus e rv at i VC'

3. Provided individually by scicntifi~ team:

Food (all .mea l s are provided by and cooked by each

indi v idua 1 on board for t hcmsc 1 ves )