Conversion factors of sea cucumber

Abstract

The sea cucumber (Holoturidas), has become a new export product from Nicaragua, charging increasing commercial boom and have been subject to commercial exploitation that promote a significant source of employment and income to coastal communities from the North Caribbean of Nicaragua. The study is quantitative with a descriptive character of cross sectional scope with a duration of 3 months. The conversion factors of three Holoturidas species carried out by the Nicaraguan Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture in Bilwi city, from March to May 2017, were studied; for this, the population sample was 95 living individuals of which 31 individuals of Holothuria floridana, 64 individuals of Isostichopus badionotus and 69 individuals of Mexican Holothuria obtaining a total weight of 51.72 pounds of fresh specimens with viscera and the percentage of weight reduction due to the different processes that the sea cucumber takes to reach its final conversion (dry weight), it was as follows; for the first species it was 91.96% of its initial weight loss, for the second it was 96.11% of its initial weight loss and 91.30% for the third species