The University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute started a sea cucumber ranching program in partnership with Masinloc's Coastal Resources Office, where I worked, and the fisherfolk from one of our two islands. For two years, we routinely distributed, collected, measured, and weighed sea cucumbers in an effort to create an alternative livelihood for our fisher famiiles. This pictures is early on in our data collection and in the bag are inch long baby cucumbers. In the background is the mainland of Mansinloc and the beautiful Zambales mountains on the big island of Luzon.