Queen conch aquaculture remains a conservation symbol and is not yet a fisheries solution

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Abstract Conservation aquaculture, defined as cultivating aquatic organisms to manage or replenish natural populations, has been advocated as a strategy to enhance fisheries production and help restore declining populations. Culture is especially compelling for species in steep decline and for which there is established methodology. The queen conch Aliger gigas is an example of a species with widely overexploited populations, with attempts to culture the species commercially ongoing for > 40 years. However, hatchery-releases have shown low survival from post-settlement to near maturity, leading to low conservation aquaculture potential. When this is viewed alongside large-scale fishery extractions, it is apparent that it is not commercially feasible to replace wild harvest nor ecologically feasible to replenish queen conch populations using existing aquaculture approaches. An age-based mortality model estimates the magnitude of culture required to replace a single adult of reproductive age. Extrapolations from catch–weight relationships highlight the scale of facilities and costs required to partially offset the harvest in a typical Caribbean fishery. Estimates of reproduction to achieve replacement suggest a greater yield from properly protecting natural breeding aggregations. Queen conch aquaculture is useful for scientific inquiry, community engagement and education, but not for stock enhancement or population restoration without more practical and cost-efficient options. Therefore, protecting breeding aggregations should be prioritized for the ecological viability of the species, as well as for its economic value for the people and industries that rely upon it.