Solomon Islands Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources has put a stop to the harvesting of sea cucumber.
The ministry says the five month open harvest period ended at midnight on January 31 and it warns no extensions will be given.
The beche-de-mer fishery was supposed to close at the end of November last year but had run longer due to delays in the issuing of export licenses.
Data collected by the Ministry of Fisheries shows fewer high grade beche-de-mer species were bought by exporters during the recent season.
The ministry told the Solomon Star the species had been exploited and its recovery had been slow in spite of a two year closure.
It said the decline is of great concern but the ministry was committed to improving the fishery's sustainability.
