Pearl farming is an environmentally benign income source to many remote Paci?c island communities and is the region’s most valuable aquaculture commodity. The culture of ‘mabé pearls,’ or half-pearls, requires lower ?nancial and technological investment, has a shorter culture duration than round pearl culture and is compatible with the lifestyles of many coastal communities. The mabé pearl sector offers a variety of livelihood opportunities to communities, including oyster collection and sales, the production of mabé pearls, and mother-of-pearl or mabé pearl jewellery and handicraft items.
The winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin, is the traditional species used for mabé pearl production and has been used to sustain the mabé pearl industry in Tonga since the mid-1970s. Mabé pearl production in Tonga remained an artisanal industry until recently, with the country now recognised as the primary producer of mabé pearls in the south Pacific. Rapid recent development of the sector has resulted in the establishment of 18 mabé pearls farms, which produce > 4,000 pearls with an estimated annual revenue of > USD 275,000, annually. Aquaculture commodity analysis identified mabé pearl culture as having high feasibility for development and the greatest potential to support livelihood benefits in Tonga.
Here we discuss the key factors and underlying research that has sustained the recent growth of the Tongan mabé pearl sector, specifically through improvement and optimisation of: (1) hatchery procedures; (2) culture site selection; (3) husbandry techniques; (4) mabé pearl culture techniques, and; (5) quality control and grading. We discuss how this research will increase productivity and profitability for pearl farmers and aid the sustainable expansion of the Tongan mabé pearl sector. Lastly, we demonstrate the suitability of mabé pearl farming for alternative livelihood development in Tonga and discuss its potential applicability for other international coastal communities.