Excerpts from a report contributed by the authors in the 12th Annual Meeting of the Society of Aquaculture Engineers of the Philippines, Inc. (SAEP), held at the BFAR-National Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center (NIFTDC) in Bonuan Binloc, Dagupan City, Philippines on November 7, 1998.

Over the years, commercial production of mudcrab, Scylla spp, has been undertaken only in bamboo or net-fenced brackishwater ponds. Its feasibility was proven through series of verification trials conducted in commercial ponds by SEAFDEC/AQD researchers and is now being practiced elsewhere in the country. Of late, the introduction of using net enclosure to grow mudcrabs in mangroves or tidal zones offers a bright prospect in aquasilviculture. Using mangroves as natural resource, paves the natural way of creating livelihood among fisherfolk in the coastal areas. While this method is by far not very popular in the Philippines, the same has been carried out for quite some time in Indonesia, Malaysia, Viet Nam and China. The advantages of this method include low investment cost, ease of construction, environment-friendly and this project can be operated quickly.