Our Hobby is wiping out the reefs

[tang named junkyard]

My stepdad went to Hawaii. Their scuba guide informed them they wouldn't be seeing the fish as it was 10 years ago because the aquarium trade is wiping them out. He said when he went scuba diving he was disappointed. It was a lot more bare than he thought it would be. A good story.

http://www.humanesociety.org/news/magazines/2011/01-02/trouble_in_paradise.html

 

[karsseboom]

Your dad was misinformed then.

 

[tebstan]

Sounds like a guide was trying to justify why he took you to a bad spot.

As hobbyists we need to be aware of our impact on the reefs. However, the situation has improved with better technology and awareness.

 

[TheReeferer]

I'm not surprised; even without knowing all the facts and just relying on common sense, ask yourself this question;

How many species of reef fish have been successfully bred in captivity? Out of those, how many can be commercially successful?

 

[csmfish]

I dont think there is enough of us to impact the fish trade population. I mean, how many people need a tang? Look at that aspect as opposed to all the fish we eat and they are still barley surviving. If we ate Tangs, maybe. If anything, I would blame it on environmental pollution.

 

[Six line]

If you can sell a yellow tang for $90 you're going to catch every single one in sight. You have to be in denial to think that at least some species in some places are not decimated by the aquarium trade.

 

[T Diddy]

This should be interesting...


http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/pubs/ar_hrs188F5.pdf

 

[T Diddy]

I dont think there is enough of us to impact the fish trade population. I mean, how many people need a tang? Look at that aspect as opposed to all the fish we eat and they are still barley surviving. If we ate Tangs, maybe. If anything, I would blame it on environmental pollution.

Food should be the thing on everyone's mind. There are over 7 Billion people on this rock.

 

[rtparty]

If you can sell a yellow tang for $90 you're going to catch every single one in sight. You have to be in denial to think that at least some species in some places are not decimated by the aquarium trade.

Sounds like you are being ripped off. Yellow Tangs go for about $25-30 around me.

 

[TucanSam007]

The aquarium trade definitely has an impact. It's no where near as big as the overall human impact on our oceans though. My two cents. I think the hobby at least promotes awareness to these problems. I think our actions (as a human race) have already acknowledged the fact that we will wipe out coral reefs by 2050. Hopefully we can get our act together to save other ocean life so it doesn't progress further. Yet I don't think we'll be seeing any "save a tang" infomercials anytime soon as we do with those furry cuddly animals.

 

[Palting]

The problem of reef decimation is due to a multitude of reasons. To say that our hobby is causing the decimation of reefs is wrong. To say that our hobby is not part of the problem is also wrong. Indeed, unscrupulous harvesting to supply our hobby is contributory, but changes are being made to improve that. It is part of our responsibility to make sure we participate in those changes. Do we purchase aquacultured coral exclusively? If we see an LFS selling a large piece of wild coral, illegal in most areas, do we report them?

 

[rtparty]

Everyone in here needs to read this website.

http://hawaiibanfactcheck.org/

You will see that the fish population has actually risen in many parts and that the aquarium trade has almost no impact. Recreational fishing is the biggest problem but people believe the propaganda and spread rumors.

 

[ntropics]

Habitat destruction is usually more of a cause of loss than taking from the wild. I am an orchid grower, and while plants taken from the wild often causes a species to become endangered, the real culprit is almost always the loss of forests to make way for farming. (I was in Massachusetts once and saw thousands, yes thousands of lady slipper orchids, in one woody area. Two years later, it was a housing development! Illegal to collect, but not to destroy!))

If the acidity of the oceans continues to rise, thanks to CO2, then the destruction of coral reefs will be tremendous. The safest place for corals may then be IN our tanks (irony implied).

Bruce

 

[ZOKU]

The problem of reef decimation is due to a multitude of reasons. To say that our hobby is causing the decimation of reefs is wrong. To say that our hobby is not part of the problem is also wrong.

I agree with this.

Are we as hobbyists decimating the reefs? ...probably not. I don't think the word "decimating" is accurate.

Affecting them? ...I would guess that we are.

How could we not be? Not saying our hobby is the sole reason, but let's face it - we're not exactly "giving back" in this hobby. It's take, take, take for our own eye candy and the sheer wow-factor the hobby brings.

I suppose we'd need someone to put up some factual numbers.
How many people are actively involved in the hobby?
How many people continue to get involved each year?
How many of all your aquarium inhabitants (inverts, fish, misc, etc, etc.) are captive bred?

 

[seapug]

everyone in here needs to read this website.

http://hawaiibanfactcheck.org/

you will see that the fish population has actually risen in many parts and that the aquarium trade has almost no impact. Recreational fishing is the biggest problem but people believe the propaganda and spread rumors.

+1

 

[edward45]

Put yourself in a Hawaiians shoes, if you could jump in the ocean everyday and swim with tangs and turtles and see coral the size of a small car, you'd be telling the aquarium trade to get the heck out of here too. This is a place bombarded by tourism and people, they just want to have something for themselves. The ocean is a place for Hawaiians to go and escape all the tourists, to snorkel and dive; or to just chill on the beach, or a surfboard. This isn't about fact or fiction, this is about another thing being taken away from them.

 

[tang named junkyard]

"Each year, around 100 commercial collectors take an estimated 1.5–3.75 million fish and invertebrates from Hawaii’s reefs."

The story goes on to say 99 percent of the fish don't make it past 1 year.

He wasn't misinformed btw, he went scuba diving. One of the issues is that the collectors take the younger fish before they have a chance to breed.

 

[Reefing Newbie]

I dont think there is enough of us to impact the fish trade population. I mean, how many people need a tang? Look at that aspect as opposed to all the fish we eat and they are still barley surviving. If we ate Tangs, maybe. If anything, I would blame it on environmental pollution.

The people of Hiwaii actually eat tangs. It is a food source there and in other places where tangs are native.

Overfishing, pollution, and habitat destruction are causing more of an impact. There is also all of the garbage that is floating around. I can't remember the name or the location, but there is a mass of garbage in the ocean that is the size of Texas. It is all in one place being moved by the current, but the size of Texas! That is a major problem for anything that thinks an object in there is food. The hobby has an impact but it isn't the sole reason why things are dying. Every bit we as hobbyists do to promote captive breeding and aquaculture helps. If you think about it, the corals in our tanks could be used to help increase the coral numbers if need be.

 

[edward45]

And who cares if that statistic is fictitious or not. We need to respect the Hawaiians and their decision to ban saltwater fish collecting, even if that means giving up our beloved Yellow Tangs. We collect their state fish and put them in aquariums for gods sake. That should be protected. I always hate seeing a humuhumunukunukuapuaʻa in an aquarium.

 

[T Diddy]

This should be interesting...


http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/pubs/ar_hrs188F5.pdf

He didn't happen to go scuba diving with "snorkel Bob" did he? I think that organizations like the humane society and PETA do have good intentions, but often the misinformation and actions taken to correct the "issues" (as they see them), are often skewed.

Have a look at the link I posted previously. It was put together by Hawaii's own Dept. of Natural Resources. Granted the info is a little dated at this point, and I would love to see some current data (from the DLNR/DAR), but the data seems to show an increase in the overall population of ornamental fish species in the FRAs (Fish Replenishment Areas).