Where is the fishes and coral come from?

[Gideon]

Hi ,

I have a 3ft marine tank, and enjoy the hobby so much that i went to learn diving. While in the ocean there are so many beautiful fishes and corals. em.... but when we dive, we cannot take and catch any fishes and corals from the sea, as to protect the fishes and corals.

em... question raised in my mind. then where did the LFS get there fishes and corals? Any control and rule or law they need to follow to protect our beautiful ocean ?

As keeping marine fish is not a easy hobby to pick up at the beginning, fishes and corals may die ( personally, i have a few fishes and corals dead on my hands.

Until now, i am still a marina fish keeper. Like to buy new corals and fishes for my tank.

hope any one give any comments on my topic.

[iskay]

Most marine fishes are still collected from the wild with various degrees of sustainability. Some species are being readily cultured - clownfishes, dottybacks, pygmy angels, etc...

Same for Corals and other livestocks, most are collected but cultured ones are becoming more and more available.

Try to get cultured livestock when possible as they are generally hardier, especially aquacultured ones.

[Digiman]

The fishes and corals (esp LPS and softies) found in LFS are still largely harvested from the ocean.

It may seem that we are over-harvesting the ocean for our marine hobby but in reality the damage done to the ocean through collection for the marine trade is nothing compared to the damage done by fish trawlers harvesting the ocean for food.

Bottom trawlings especially can do large-scale damage to ocean bottom and cause massive solid pollution to the sea area being dredged.

In this hobby over-collecting a species in the wild is not very likely. Take for instance yellow tang, one of the most common fish in our hobby. We collect by the thousands each year but yet scientific data has shown that the population of yellow tangs in the wild is still healthy and thriving, unaffected by our harvest. However if yellow tang ever becomes a food fish one day, its population will be greatly reduced due to over-collection by commercial fish trawlers.

That said it does not mean that we can be oblivious to the harms, no matter how small, we are causing to the environment. We still have to do our part in keeping the hobby sustainable and to help protect the environment. Be a conscientious and responsible hobbyist by always researching on your livestock before you buy it. Practice good husbandry and support net caught and not cyanide caught fishes.

[solasido]

It is where CITES comes into play.

There are bans and quota restrictions depending in the species endangered status. Even live rock trade is under quota.

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