Spawning occurs naturally in the wild and, when conditions are right, it is the ideal time to collect spat. It is a widely used method in France, but we have also supplied Irish and Scottish clients involved in restoration projects. If you’re thinking about raising your own spat you will be looking at preparing collectors for submersion. Here are our top 7 tips to follow when liming your collectors (‘coupelles’ in french) to make sure you have the best result every time!

1. Soak the coupelles before the liming process to get some biofouling cover – 6 weeks is ideal
2. Dry the collectors completely before liming – 3 days is an indication in Brittany – if the weather conditions are very humid it could take longer.  If the collectors are not dry, the lime will slide off, you really need it to stick all over! If not properly limed, the settlement will be less and there’s a higher chance for the spat to be broken and damaged when you detach it / strip the bars
3. Make sure to use a good quality slaked lime. Mix approx. 10 gallons of water with 25 kg of lime to make sure you have the right consistency. It should stick and cover your hand after dipping
4. Next dip your collectors in the solution – the collectors should be entirely covered
5. Do this process horizontally (e.g. using an old bath), not vertically
6. Let them dry again before setting out at sea
7. The bars are usually set at an angle on specially made frames (see an example on the photo below)

 

Collectors come mounted on bars of 45 units and are available in both perforated and non-perforated versions. Collectors are used in the collection of both gigas and edulis spat, perforated collectors are particularly used with flat oysters.

Buy Collectors

Triskell sell collectors by the pallet of 198 bars. The bars are 1.2m in length, weigh 1.5kg and have a diameter of 143mm. We can also supply 25kg bags of lime with your order.