FAU Queen Conch Mobile Lab Debuts in The Bahamas with First Hatch

From left: Volunteers from the Cape Eleuthera Institute (CEI) with Megan Davis, Ph.D., (center left), CEI volunteer, Kennedy Bliss, Mia Avril and Tereno Johnson.

the island of Eleuthera in The Bahamas, a new chapter in marine conservation has officially begun. Florida Atlantic University 's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, in partnership with The Island School's Cape Eleuthera Institute (CEI) and supported by Chef José Andrés' Longer Tables Fund, has announced that the Queen Conch Mobile Lab is now fully operational following the arrival of the first queen conch egg masses and the very first hatch in the new system.

The milestone marks a defining moment for the Cape Eleuthera Queen Conch Conservancy, a community-based conservation initiative focused on helping to restore one of the Caribbean's most culturally and ecologically significant marine species. Established in February, the mobile lab is designed to grow up to 2,000 juvenile queen conch annually for conservation and restoration efforts throughout the region.

In April, CEI researchers introduced the first egg masses into the mobile lab and witnessed the first successful hatch - a delicate and critical early stage in the queen conch life cycle. Since the lab's arrival, teams from FAU Harbor Branch and CEI have worked side by side to test and refine the systems inside and outside the mobile hatchery, ensuring it can consistently support egg hatching, larval development, juvenile rearing, and restoration.

Approximately 200 newly-metamorphosed conch have now been produced from the first egg mass. According to CEI, more than 100 additional individuals (and still counting) from the same cohort and from a recent second egg mass have successfully completed metamorphosis at the mobile lab, marking this a key developmental milestone.

This reflects the transition from the free-swimming veliger stage to the benthic crawling juvenile stage. After the eggs successfully hatched, the larvae completed their 21-day developmental cycle, reached competency, and initiated metamorphosis in response to seagrass detrital cues. The juveniles are now progressing toward the juvenile stage and will require approximately one year of growth before they are ready for release into the wild.

"We are incredibly excited to reach these milestones because it represents far more than the successful launch of a mobile hatchery," said Megan Davis, Ph.D., director of FAU Harbor Branch's Queen Conch Lab and a research professor of aquaculture and stock enhancement. "It demonstrates what is possible when science, conservation and community come together with a shared purpose. Seeing the first egg masses and hatch in the mobile lab means we are now actively growing the next generation of queen conch for restoration, for healthy seagrass ecosystems and for the communities across The Bahamas. It's a transformative and hopeful moment for conservation."

The mobile lab is a fully self-contained hatchery on wheels that brings aquaculture and restoration capabilities directly to coastal communities across the Caribbean. Measuring approximately 26 feet by 8 feet, the unit is powered by solar energy and outfitted with specialized saltwater and aeration systems to support sensitive queen conch larvae and algae cultivation. Once deployed, the lab connects to a local seawater source, becoming a fully operational field hatchery that enables conservation work in areas without permanent aquaculture infrastructure.

Native to Florida and the Caribbean, the queen conch is far more than an iconic shell. The large marine snail plays a vital role in maintaining healthy seagrass beds by grazing on algae, helping preserve ecosystems that support fisheries and marine biodiversity. Yet despite its ecological importance, queen conch populations have suffered steep declines due to overfishing and habitat degradation. Between 1980 and 2020, approximately 31,000 tons of queen conch were harvested annually across the Caribbean, representing nearly $39 million per year in fisheries value.

Today, the species is listed as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act, and surveys indicate that commercial fishing in The Bahamas could become unsustainable within the next 10 to 15 years without intervention.

The biology of the queen conch underscores both its wonder and its vulnerability. During the breeding season, from April through September, a single conch can produce up to 10 egg masses, each containing as many as 500,000 eggs. At approximately 9 p.m., the eggs hatch into microscopic larvae known as veligers, which drift in the ocean currents feeding on microscopic algae. Over a 21-day larval cycle, the veligers develop from two lobes to four and eventually six before metamorphosing into tiny crawling snails that bury themselves in seagrass beds.

"Fewer than 1% survive to adulthood in the wild," said Davis. "Queen conch reach adulthood at approximately 4 to 5 years of age, when the lip of their shell thickens to about 9 to 15 millimeters, and they can live up to 40 years, carrying the same shell throughout their entire lives."

Inside the mobile lab, newly metamorphosed conch will be raised during the breeding season before being transferred to grow-out tanks, where they will feed on natural diatoms and a specially formulated seaweed-based gel diet. Once they reach about 7 to 9 centimeters in size, the juveniles will be acclimated in protected pens before being released into surrounding seagrass habitats alongside local community members.

What has become equally important as the science itself is the sense of community emerging around the project. The mobile lab is expected to directly engage between 1,000 and 1,500 visitors annually while supporting two full-time staff members and several interns. Through CEI's longstanding relationships within Eleuthera, the initiative also will provide outreach programs, workforce training and sustainable aquaculture education for local residents and fisherfolk.

"What continues to inspire us is the way this project brings people together," said Becky Holt, assistant director of the Queen Conch Lab. "Scientists, students, fishers, interns and community members are all sharing in these moments together - whether it's gathering late at night to witness a hatch for the first time or learning the techniques needed to support sustainable aquaculture. The mobile lab has become more than a research facility. It's a place where conservation, education and community connection are happening side by side."

Davis and her team established its strategic partnership with CEI in 2023, recognizing the institute's internationally respected science and experiential education programs, as well as its long history of queen conch research in the region. The collaboration builds upon more than two decades of CEI's work connecting environmental science with community-based solutions.

The mobile lab in Eleuthera is part of a larger vision led by FAU Harbor Branch to establish community-based queen conch farms throughout the Caribbean. Since launching its first mobile hatchery in 2022, the Queen Conch Lab has expanded to multiple locations, including Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Curaçao and additional sites throughout The Bahamas.

Last year, Davis and Holt were the recipients of the 2025 Responsible Seafood Innovation Award in Aquaculture from the Global Seafood Alliance, recognized for bringing restoration science out of the lab and into Caribbean communities through the mobile labs.

"This work is about creating a future where Caribbean communities can actively help restore and sustain their own queen conch populations," said Davis. "Our vision is to continue expanding these mobile labs across the region, building local expertise, creating marine science opportunities and strengthening conservation efforts country by country. The queen conch is deeply tied to the identity, economy and ecosystems of the Caribbean, and we believe these partnerships can help ensure the species thrives for generations to come."

The project is funded by the Longer Tables Fund, the philanthropic initiative launched by renowned chef and humanitarian José Andrés. The Moore Bahamas Foundation, an affiliate of The Moore Charitable Foundation, provided initial planning support.

An adult queen conch.

Conch egg masses incubating in round screen bottom vessels. They incubate with flowing water for four days and on the day of hatch they are moved into a larval tank for hatching.

Megan Davis, Ph.D., setting up a queen conch larval (veliger) tank with aeration. The conch eggs hatch in these tanks. The larvae or veligers grow in these tanks for three weeks before they are ready for metamorphosis.

-FAU-