Cyanide-free, net-caught fish for the marine aquarium trade

[Polkster13]

Link to article. (http://www.spc.org.nc/coastfish/news/lrf/7/LRF7-08.htm)

Those mortality rates are staggering! :(

[Dozer]

Thanks for the link Frederick. This is important information. It is bad for everyone. Bad for the fish, obviously and bad for the hobbyist because we get fish that are not healthy because of the cyanide and also we will inevitably get blamed when some of the marine fish populations get decimated because of such practices.

I wonder if a portion of our club dues could go toward some sort of educational/research effort where we could maintain a list of retailers that we know FOR SURE do not use cyanide. That way those of us who choose to can avoid the retailers that do sell cyanide caught fish. Whether it's local retailers or online retailers.

[Thunderkat]

I couldn't believe that when it said people use cyanide to catch fish to eat. I don't like the idea of eating fish caught using cyanide. :lol

[alton]

It's kinda like a redneck using dynamite. All though I think dynamite is safer. On the serious side I can't believe people in the trade are still using cyanide. I wish some one would keep track of these wholesalers who carry and distribute

[Polkster13]

It is up to the hobbyists to query the retailers and insisting they prove to us that the fish were caught cyanide-free before purchasing the fish. Then if the "consumer" will only buy from those shops that do provide this documentation, then this practice will cease. Until we as hobbyists are willing to go the extra mile (verifing the fish are net caught and paying a little extra for this documentation), then this practice will continue until all of the world's reefs have been destroyed.

[v2k]

At the meeting, Richard said that if all hobbyists refuse to buy fish that have not been in the tank for at least five days, we could create a very strong deterrent to cyanide caught fish. He also pointed out that one should only buy fish that are eating because that means their internal organs are not damaged by cyanide.

[Thunderkat]

Anybody have a list of LFS in San Antonio that carry only net caught fish?

[Richard]

There isn't some sort of documentation to prove that fish are net caught. I don't think any shop would deliberately order cyanide caught fish since that would be very bad for business unless they were able to sell those fish very quickly.

You know the saying that "stuff" rolls downhill, well in this case stuff rolls uphill. If all hobbyists insist on buying only quality livestock that is healthy and eating then shops simply would not order from wholesalers that offer poor quality livestock regardless of how cheap it is. That would in turn force bad wholesalers to clean up their act or go out of business. There are alot of quality wholesalers around now and alot of shops offering quality animals. This is all good for consumers and good for the industry IMO.

On the other hand, if consumers are more willing to pay $15 for a yellow tang and take the chance that it lives then that would force the industry to go towards cheaper and more destructive collection methods. It simply isn't possible to offer REALLY cheap fish and have high quality as well.

[CD]

...and it's not JUST the fish for resale, people!!!
Proven fact - in areas where cyanide collection takes place, the REEFS DIE too!!! So not only are these jerks effectively killing the fish they catch with cyanide, they are ALSO killing the fish they DON'T catch by eliminating their food source - our precious reefs :angry
Grrrrrr!!!

As a side note, it's not all that easy for the retailers to find a vendor they can "trust", as vendors are constantly switching sources that they buy from to get the retailers the best prices and higher volume sales. Best case scenerio? Buying tank raised fish only!!!

W.

[Richard]

Buying tank raised fish only!!!


Unfortunately that is not possible yet. Most fish aren't bred in captivity yet and there is often limited supply available of those that are. Someday maybe...

Personally I think if ALL fish/corals were captive bred that would ultimately be very bad for the reefs. IMO, having healthy reefs be a good and sustainable source of income for the island locals is very important. Most of these areas are very poor so if you take that away from them they will find a way (probably much more destructive) to feed their families by using the reefs around them. What's better, managed collection of live fish & corals or harvesting coral reefs as a source of raw material for concrete? Here's a little factiod from Walt Smith that should make the answer obvious...

"In Indonesia 25,000 metric tons of raw coral is extracted for lime by
one village alone each year just to produce cement mix. By comparison, all of the
aquarium coral exports combined in Fiji probably do not exceed more than a
couple metric tons of “raw coral” per year."

[CD]

Here's a little eye opener:
*********************
VANISHING ACT

What's killing coral reefs? For starters, fishing nets can accidentally yank corals off the ocean floor. "Shrimp fishing is especially destructive," says Jackson. In some areas, fishermen collect tropical fish for pet stores by stunning the fish with cyanide poison. At the same time, the poison causes coral bleaching.

Scientists predict that more than haft the world's reefs may be gone by the year 2030. In the last 30 years, the area of Caribbean seafloor covered by reefs has fallen by 80 percent.

If coral reefs disappear, many other ocean species will too. Over 25 percent of all sea creatures call the reefs home. And corals are vital to humans: Fish living there provide food, and many medicines come from the reef's plants and animals.

What can be done? Jackson thinks setting aside large marine preserves could help save the reefs. "Today, less than 1 percent of the world's reefs are fully protected," he says. And he urges everyone to carefully choose the types of fish they eat. "Most coral reef fishes, such as groupers and snappers, are dangerously overfished." If everyone pitches in, Jackson thinks the coral reefs can be saved.
*********************

Half the world's reefs GONE by the year 2030. I'll tell you what folks, this is horrifying!!! Human overpopulation will be the destruction of earth's reefs...we may not see it in our lifetime, but your kids probably will. So what do we do - just bilk this planet until everything is gone, and let the next generation worry about it, or do something NOW before it is too late?

W.

[Richard]

Human overpopulation will be the destruction of earth's reefs...we may not see it in our lifetime, but your kids probably will. So what do we do - just bilk this planet until everything is gone


Wendy, that's far too pessimistic. Mother nature will make a population "adjustment" eventually, she always does ;) . Oh wait a minute, maybe I'm the pessimistic one.