A study on coral reefs condition in the coastal waters of Kei Besar Island was conducted in 2019 with the aimed to provide data on taxa composition, density and colony diameter of stony corals, coral reefs condition, and ecological indices of the coral community. It was found during the study that there are 17 families of stony coral, which consist of 62 genera and 206 species. Among those species of stony coral, 79 species are classified as protected species and 50 species as ornamental coral. Coral families of Acroporidae, Faviidae, Fungiidae, and Poritidae have high species richness. The density of stony coral colonies between reef stations ranged from 3.0 colonies m−2 (low) with a relatively large colony diameter until 16.3 colonies m−2 (high) with a small coral colony diameter. The only one reef station was in Excellent condition, while seven reef stations in Good, four reef stations in Fair, and two coral reef sites were in Poor condition. The coral community in the coastal waters of Kei Besar Island had moderate species diversity of stony coral and low species dominance with stable condition.

The objective of this study was to produce less salt-dried fish by the treatment of chitosan nanoparticles added into saline solution during the salting process. The concentration of nano chitosan of 0.4%, 0.7%, and 1.0% was added into 20% saline solution combined with soaking time of 30 minutes, 60 minutes, and 90 minutes. Soaking fish in 20% saline solution for 3 hours in the salting process was performed as a comparison. Objective and subjective tests covers: salt content, total microbes (TPC), moisture and acid insoluble ash, and organoleptic were carried out to determine the characteristics of the final product. The results showed as follows: salt 13.4-16.71%; moisture 11.11-14.48 %; Acid Insoluble Ash 0.05-0.08%; Total Microbial 1.05x102 – 5.3x102 CFU/gram; and Organoleptic 8.2-8.73. Those values meet the requirements of the Indonesian National Standard. Based on the results, it can be concluded that 0.4% of nano chitosan in 20% saline solution combined with 30 minutes soaking time on salting process produce less salt dried fish successfully.