Andaman captive clown release program

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Hello all clown enthusiasts
I live in thailand and have recently returned from a dive trip to ko lanta. Whilst there I saw a group of students from bangkok university who were ther conducting a release program for amphirion ocellaris (their reasoning being that there were not enough to see in the area ie no real scientific reason). Anyway these guys are breeding common clowns in the lab by the boat load and then shipping them out on to "free" heteractis magnifica in the area of Hin Haa.
Alarm bells starting to ring for some as they did for me
The first lot of 100 that were released swam away from the anemone (as any reefkeeper would expect, these fish had never seen an anemone before) and were eaten within 30 mins.
Then cages were placed over the free anemones and clowns were placed in the cages. However small gaps under the cages allowed the clowns out and the result was the same as before. They had a separate dive boat to myself but I could inspect their handywork on my own dives.

I wanted to explain to them that captive raised clowns can often take weeks (months or never) to host an anemone and that reading this site or any book on clowns would have given them an insight in what was to happen. i did not get to see or speak to them but hope that they get the message soon and do a little more homework next time. so if you are out there take noe please

 

[oama]

First, it is a total myth that captive reared clowns will not host. In fact, it is really up to the clownfish. Some may dive directly into a anemone while others may take weeks to months, while still others may never "host".

Secondly, what does concern me is the source of these clownfish broodstock. If the broodstock are not directly taken from the local population, it would be a horrible abomination to release the offspring into this environment.

 

[Cody Ray]

The ones that don't host in the wild get eaten Survival of the smartest I guess.

 

[stykthyn]

yeah that just sounds wrong. If the clowns werent native to that reef to begin with the could possibly edge out resident species. If this happened in the states I would have wildlife officials stick it to them.

 

[adtravels]

OK this was an existing species they tried to add
What is the problem with adding clowns from a different broodstock?
surely the dilution of the gene pool in an existing species can only be a good thing promting "genetic vigour".
The only thing i can see that would be a problem is introducing a genetic disease, but as far as i know it is very unlikely that a genetic problem could occur in the space of one or two generations.
dont get me wrong the reason i posted this was that I would have done it different.

 

[Fishboy42]

I think they are getting at the issue of variants and localized genetic populations of clowns. Ocellaris have a huge range with many genetically distinct populations, so if you are taking broodstock from hundreds of miles away, it is conceivable that they could replace the existing population, and you've now lost the genetic diversity of the "replaced" fish, even within the same "species," which is only a human definition anyway...

As long as some of the original wild population is left, it's probably better to protect it so it can recover rather than adding "foreign" clowns to it, JMO.

-Matt

 

[Atticus]

They should fix the reason that is causing the low number instead of artificially increasing the numbers. It is like throwing more money into a failing business. It may look better for awhile, but it is still failing if you don't fix it.

 

[bigworm616]

unless the ocellaris clown populations are dwindeling in the area, new clowns should not be added. Im really oppossed to what they are doing.

 

[tmays]

I would think or should I say, hope that a bunch of college students had way more common sense than to do such a thing! Anyone with half a brain should know that it is much more important to save the habitat in wich they live. Otherwise, it is just a big waste of time, even if it's the same exact strain from the local area!!! Do any of you agree? If they do not get rid of the problem, all the new ones will just die off also.

 

[Dan]

The new ones did die off. Yummmmy. Did you say something about a bunch of college students having common sense? Good one. This reminds me of a video I saw of some people that had rescued some sea lions after the Exxon Valdez spill. They released these rehabilitated seals with a big celebration. And right in front of their eyes, a couple of killer whales came along and ate the seals (after "playing' with them a while). Ouch! (and at $80,000 bucks per seal).

In truth, rebuilding wild populations of animals with a little husbandry is one way to replenish depleted populations (and occurs all the time). Relocation is another way (which also brings in another "strain"). However, the reason for depletion must be fixed. I would not worry about all that different strain stuff. The distribution of ocellaris is so great that different strains are probably moving in and out all the time. They just need to pre-train the fish to host in anemones while still in the lab. Still, these introductions are not ideal, but not apocolyptic either.

Dan

 

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Clownfish release program update

Clownfish release program update

Anyway My friend is a journo who was invited to report the program for a publication in bangkok and I managed to wangle my way onto the program as an experienced diver and photographer (I am not very good at photography but am a padi dm, I managed to stay at an exclusive resort for free and use all the facilities (very pleased with myself). The clowns were released at Ko haa (five islands there are actually 6) near Ko lanta, Thailand.
I was very skeptical about this program when I first heard about it, but being part of it really made me feel that there could be some succes for the reintroduction of these ocellaris clowns into the area (they are not extinct but scarce).

The program was funded by the owner of the resort and the fish were bred in captivity at a local university in Krabi.

We took the fish down in plastic bags and introduced them to specially made cages that were placed over the anemones, there were wrasses and groupers queing up for a free feed but not one of the two hundred we released that day were taken. Amazingly these fish who had never seen an anemone all hosted instantly, amazing what the presence of a hungry predator can do!

Also the cages are removed after 1 month and the fishes are left to fend for themselves, there were fish there that had survied previous releases. A 5% survival rate was quoted, which compared to natural mortality was quite high I believe.
Anyway here are some pics.
The cage

Fish ready to be released

 

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More
Hungry Wrasse

happy ocellaris

The locals

 

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thought this would generate more interest?

 

[oama]

As a Marine Biologists, it still bothers me very much. But being in the 3rd world and funded by a local tourist industry, I don't doubt it would happen.