Catch of the day: Roszana (left) showing off her haul after going cockle gathering at Pantai Klebang. — Bernama
MELAKA: The otherwise tame recreational beach of Pantai Klebang here has been experiencing a sudden viral surge in popularity since last week, becoming a vibrant, festive scene as crowds descend to gather cockles.
This lively scene emerged after social media was abuzz with posts highlighting the abundance of cockles on the shore, with people wading into the mudflats at low tide to hunt for them by hand, or using scoops and nets.
Besides the thrill of the hunt, the current high price for cockles, reportedly between RM10 and RM18 per kilo, has given locals an incentive to gather their own for free.
Roszana Johari, a 29-year-old childcare provider from Kampung Sungai Putat in Batu Berendam, said she visited the beach twice since Thursday to gather the shellfish after hearing about the phenomenon.
“It was exciting to see the videos of so many cockles here and we didn’t want to miss the chance to collect some, especially as they are very expensive now.
“All the cockles we found are fresh and plump. We can make various dishes throughout the week, like sambal kerang and rendang kerang,” she said, Bernama reported.
She added that shortly after arriving at the beach at 7am Friday, she managed to collect over 2kg of cockles using just a small scoop.
Mariam Yahya, 50, of Sungai Hitam, Tanjung Kling, shared that she was willing to take a day off from her clothing business to join the gathering, excited by the news of the abundant harvests.
“It’s rare to see an atmosphere like this; you get so absorbed in it. Once you start searching, your scoop is suddenly full of cockles before you know it,” she said.
Lem Swee Kee, 53, of Pokok Mangga, said that he and his 50-year-old wife, Gao Chun Yan, initially visited the beach simply to experience the “cockles festival” after seeing it on social media, but ended up joining the crowd to gather some as well.
Commenting on the phenomenon, state senior exco for housing, local government, drainage, climate change and disaster management, Datuk Rais Yasin, said if the abundance of the shellfish persists over a longer period, the state government will explore potential promotional activities.
State Fisheries director Saufi Affandi Talib said there have not been reports of poisoning from consumption of cockles collected at the beach so far.
The abundance of cockles at Pantai Klebang is a natural phenomenon resulting from a shellfish stock enhancement project by the state’s Fisheries Department (DOF) in 2023, which released two metric tonnes of cockle broodstock.
Saufi Affandi said that it was conducted in cooperation with the state government under the Melaka waters induced cockle breeding project to develop and strengthen fishery resources. He said DOF monitoring from Oct 15 recorded an estimated harvest of 22.5 metric tonnes of cockles.
“The broodstock was released on May 30, 2023, in Melaka’s waters. The released juveniles have since migrated and settled naturally in northern areas (around Klebang waters) and southern areas (around Merlimau waters).
“The bay-like structure of the sea embankment at Pantai Klebang causes ocean currents to carry and concentrate these young cockles in that specific area,” he said.
