Ipon and Padas - Ilocano Rare Delicacies are Ecologically Threatened

Ipon and Padas - Ilocano Rare Delicacies

are Ecologically Threatened

 Dr Abe V Rotor

Part 1 - Ipon (dulong, Tag.) is a Rare Delicacy of Ilocanos 

Ipon (dulong Tag) is a Rare Delicacy of Ilocanos. Old folks know exactly when ipon arrives, by the phase of the moon and coolness of the Siberian High. The news spreads like wildfire, and soon people crowd the fishing grounds and market. For ipon is a delicacy of the Ilocanos.

Author displays three recipes of ipon.  

Ipon (Glossogobius giuris). It is collectively the fries of anchovies, gobies, including commercial species of fish  Top photo: newly caught ipon (it is eaten raw fresh with onion and ginger).  ipon is cooked dry or with broth (sabaw) spiced with tomato, ginger, onion, and green or bell pepper). Ipon tamales (wrapped with banana leaves) is a popular recipe. So with ipon bagoong. Try ipon torta for breakfast. Juvenile and adult ipon are best cooked in sinigang with liberal amount of tomato and onion, and green pepper - and served piping hot, picnic style. (Note: The fish caught with ipon are susay (Ilk), shallow water dwellers at the estuary.)

Ipon reaches maturity to become one of the many species of freshwater and marine fish, such as these two specimens. When we were kids, we used to catch them with tiny fishhook and throw net (tabukol). Or we use seine net (lambat) across the river, and drag it upstream, trapping the fish in the process.

Local folks have a way of classifying them like ipusan (long tailed) TOP PHOTO, butubot (big bellied), LOWER PHOTO birut (juvenile ipon), and bunog (closely similar to but quite bigger than the specimen in the lower photo). The fry of many more species may be part of the collective migration upstream called ipon-run.

By the time the run is completed - or disrupted - the survivors are on their own, or they form smaller schools, this time of their own kind. I believe that among the survivors are those that become sidingan (spotted), malaga (samaral), banak or purong (mullet), kapiged (relative of the malaga), and others like ar-aro (martiniko), bagsang, gurami, and carp that either go farther upstream or move down to the sea, while others remain at the estuary where freshwater and seawater meet in varying and changing levels according to the tides and river flow.

When I was a kid I used to call ipon fairy fish, because of its similarity with fairy shrimp or alamang. This enigmatic fish when caught measures only half centimeter long, arriving in schools at the mouths of rivers like the mighty Banaoang River in Santa (Ilocos Sur), and Bauang River in La Union. 

Here the natives know exactly when it arrives, by the phase of the moon and coolness of the Siberian High. The news spreads like wildfire, and soon people crowd the fishing grounds and market. For ipon is a delicacy of the Ilocanos.

Dulong or ipon appears as a composite school, mainly fries of anchovies and gobies, Family Engraulidae and Family Gobiidae. There are also different species which later become distinct after some time. But the enigma of the ipon remains.

For example, what trigger spawning and migration? How effective is collective survival? When does weaning take place? Where? Or do members remain in school until they are adults, and continue on to produce to the next generation? Do they occur proportionately with the amount of food in the area?

If this is so, then we may offer some explanation to the annual population explosion of anchovies (dilis or munamon Ilk) along the coast of Peru which is the world's number one supplier of anchovies and fish meal. This area is characterized by upwelling, that is, upward current that brings back to the surface nutrients that was washed to sea. These are mainly guano droppings of migratory birds that feed on the anchovies. Here in the photic zone - the depth sunlight can penetrate the water - plankton abound that trigger the biological engine of food web. It is so powerful that half of the world's fish caught comes from this region. Indeed the Peruvian coast constitutes the highest marine biological density and diversity in the world.

Here the population density is such that when fish kill occurs as a result of warming of the sea surface caused by El Niño phenomenon, the water turns black which navigators in early days called tinta agua. The hull of passing ships become black as if painted with coal tar.

Unlike Peru we do not have rich upwelling for anchovies aggregation. In fact we can hardly trace the dulong-anchovy cycle. If we do, these are in pocket areas where we fish anchovies for local consumption, which is mainly for food.

Principal spawning ground of ipon - Banaoang through which the great Abra river flows out to sea. Painting of the Old Bridge across Banaoang Pass in acrylic (60" x 41") by the author. Courtesy of Dr Laurence (Rencie) Padernal), April 29. 2012

On the first day the newly hatch fish enter the estuary, they are transparent and very tiny. You can hardly count how many individuals make 100 grams. It is at this stage that ipon is best eaten fresh with ginger, tomato and onion (kilawin). Ipon caught on the second day onward is usually made into bagoong, or cooked into torta, tamales (wrapped in banana leaves), or sinigang (broth). Old folks believe that ipon make them healthy and live long. They also believe in its aphrodisiac power, and why not? Spawning stimulates sex and growth hormones.

On the second and third day, as the fish continues to travel upstream and gain in size, they acquire spots, their body turning gray, and eyes and other body parts becoming prominent. By now their number has dwindled as fishing continues, and predators - other fishes, and birds - have their fill, and soon the whole school is thinned out and finally dispersed, with a measly number surviving to maturity. Here there are no longer traces of the ipon or any other species mixed in the school.

But this explanation coming from direct observation and testimonies of old folks is inadequate to tell us what really happens from spawning, migration to dispersal, movement from sea to river and back. We don't know the extent of distribution in the countless river systems in the world, the diversity of species of what generally is called ipon or dulong.

In 1992, a bill was filled in Congress to prohibit the catching of dulong, ipon, or any similar kind. I had the chance to read and comment on it. The rational is that ipon is actually a complex spawn aggregate, which contains the young of commercial species. It is the potential loss of these species the proposed law intends to prevent. It's like the law prohibiting the harvesting, sale and transport of bamboo shoot (labong). One shoot valued at 10 pesos at that time would grow into a mature pole in a year's time with a value of 100 pesos or more.

But ipon fishing is an age long tradition, and tradition is very difficult to break. Even then, it is important to unlock the mystery of this fairy fish so that we can assign it into the ecosystem where it rightfully belongs, before satisfying man's fancy and unending appetite.~ 

Acknowledgement: Internet, Wikimedia

Part 2 - Patronizing Padas is ecologically unfriendly

Ecologically we are destroying the species every time we patronize padas bagoong. One kilo of padas probably amounts to several hundreds of individual fish that potentially mature in six months time reaching up to one kilo apiece. The mature padas is malaga (Ilk) or samaral, one of the tastiest fish in the world.  It is prized by the Chinese in celebration of the Chinese New Year. To Filipinos - and other Asians - serving samaral during Holy Week and fiestas is a status symbol. The price of samaral in the market is twice or thrice that of ordinary fish.

Dr Abe V Rotor 

Living with Nature School on Blog

 

Padas

Padas is the fry of spinefoot or rabbitfish, locally known as Malaga or samaral (right), mainly of the species Siganus canaliculatus and S. concatenates and S corallinus and S. spinus. 

 

                                                              Danggit
The white spotted siganid Siganus canaliculatus (Park, 1797), locally known as “danggit”, is one of the most important and heavily exploited fish species in the country, with adults and juveniles often targeted for boneless production, and post-larvae sizes (padas) for fish paste or bagoong, a popular condiment. Right, dried fish market of danggit, dilis (anchovies), alamang (small shrimps)

Padas is the fry of spinefoot or rabbitfish, locally known as Malaga or samaral. mainly of the species Siganus canaliculatus and S. concatenates and S corallinus and S. spinus. These species occur in schools in coastal areas around rocky and corals feeding on phytoplankton and browsing on seaweeds and seagrasses. They grow up to 280 mm. They tolerate a wide range of salinity that they enter rivers or go down to the open sea.

Spinefoots or rabbit fishes are members of the Siganidae family. There is only a single genus, Siganus with 32 member-species worldwide. They are found in the Indo-Pacific and eastern Mediterranean oceans, living in shallow coastal waters to a depth of 50 meters. They can be recognized based on pelvic fins with 2 spines (one strong inner and one outer spine, with 3 soft rays in between). Spinefoots are diurnal herbivores that feed on benthic algae. They can be found living in pairs or in school of up to 15 members.

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Caution in handling the fish based on the author’s personal experience: The samaral has very sharp and venomous spine on the dorsal, anal and pelvic fins.  The spines can cause a very sharp pain, bleed and numbness (especially when the fish is alive), but they are not fatal. Handling of the fish with hand is done by holding the gill covers, or the widespread dorsal fin.  In this way the fish becomes docile and normally does not attempt to struggle.

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When passing through Urdaneta and Villasis towns of Pangasinan you find padas bagoong in bottles sold on the shelf or by peddlers. Sometimes the small fish is beautifully arranged in rows covering the entire bottle. How skillfully and patiently is the art done considering how small the fry is. Those familiar with the product prefer seasoned bagoong  over a newly made one. Like wine, seasoned bagoong is better. They know it if the fish are well settled in the bottle with an appreciable amount of patis appearing as a distinct layer on top. On the other hand, the patis of raw bagoong is at the bottom or middle of the bottle, and if there is too much of it, they know that the product is diluted with water.

Next time a vendor offers padas, think of the tiny fish as the potential tasty malaga or samaral which grows up to a kilo apiece. Harvesting the fry (padas) and its juvenille (danggit) is an opportunity loss for the fish to increase in number and maintain a stable population level, and to grow fully and become affordable to the ordinary consumer. Harvesting of padas and danggit should be regulated, if not banned.  Conservation of this threatened species starts with us.~

Acknowledgement: Wikipedia, Internet; Conlu P V 1986 Fishes: Guide to Philippine Flora and Fauna Series.