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From: LL

I am new to the reef systems, about two months old in fact in starting a new tank.  However, the more I read the more it seems that all of these corals etc. are being ripped from the ocean, is this the case?  If it is I find it hard to justify a reef tank.  Are there places to buy plants and animals that are solely captive grown?

From: JF

All of the coral and fish are taken from the sea.  There are a few types of fish that are farm bred, but not many.  There are also some coral that are being propagated by individuals.  But if you are getting coral that you CAN keep alive (NOT anemones, for example)  you are not ripping them from nature any more that you pet dog is ripped from nature.  In fact, you can be providing them with a SAFER home than they had before.  If you do not know what you are doing, you will kill them, but that would be your fault, not the hobby's.

From: HL

Conservation is a very important (and sometimes touchy) issue, which I'm sure is of major concern to most serious aquarists. Unfortunately things are not all that clear-cut, and there are many aspects to consider:

I live in South Africa, and know the beauty of pristine wilderness, but also the extent that a hungry person will go to in order to feed his family. I am a nature lover and amateur conservationist, but I'm also a hunter. Collecting marine animals is just as much a paradox!

From: LL

I am the one who brought the captive stock to question in which you replied. I might add you are a wealth of information as I read your replies to the forum. I am a land steward in the sense of a professional degree in Landscape Architecture which deals with reclamation of derelict lands, deterring the megalopolis phenomenon that will occur in the United States and education of people in my region as to the hazards of mountain top removal which is actually taking place!

Ethically, I find it hard to distract any more ecosystems than what are already in place.  If you are from South Africa you're probably not aware of current situations like the one near Niagara Falls in which toxic wastes are leaking at an alarming rate, and the US and Canada are fighting over who should pay for clean up and then hence, does nothing. I am currently working on an advanced degree in Geographic Information Systems, which relates to the same, on a larger scale.

From: CK

HL - Yikes! I can't believe that, in a public forum such as this, you used the H-word (hunting). I not only love to hunt up here in Canada's Yukon, but also am currently engrossed in my 6th Capstick book. Now, if I could spend as much time learning about marine fish, perhaps I wouldn't be asking so many simplistic questions...

Yes, I am a hunter, and proud of it. (Apologies for going slightly off-topic here, but it does tie in with conservation).   I consider myself an ETHICAL hunter, and believe that my hunting is actively contributing to conservation in general, and to the protection and survival of the species that I hunt, in particular, because of the principle of SUSTAINABLE UTILISATION. Farmers (and some tribal authorities in rural Africa) are actively converting their tobacco and other crop-farms into game farms, because people like me (us) are paying for the opportunity to hunt. We therefore make it more profitable for the land owners to conserve their lands, re-populate it with game, and allow hunting, than to carry on with "normal" agricultural activities such as de-forestation, ploughing up the land, over-use of fertilisers (the dreaded nitrates and phosphates we get in out fresh water is proof of that), poisoning "problem animals", etc.

There are many success stories, which I can tell, but for now let's get back to our topic of marines.   I believe that the same principles of conservation and sustainable utilisation could (should) be applied to our marine aquatic hobby. If a (generally poor) collector could be convinced that he can make more money from selective collection, leaving a "breeding stock" intact so that he can return and re-harvest the same area again in future, rather than using poisons for a "one-off" harvest, then surely we are moving in the right direction. If commercial "farmers" are breeding fish and inverts for sale, are they not protecting and enhancing the survivability of the animals they sell? Again, is this not the same as the protection given by us hunters?

My only question to ponder was, that it appears that most of this forum and many like it, comes from people not having a great success rate at keeping thriving stock.  In other words it seems that everyone is learning by trial and error at the cost of ravaged reefs.  I know for a fact that if you go down to Jamaica, for five bucks the locals will yank off a piece of black coral the size of Manhattan. If you multiply that times?? and add it to all of us that are trying reef systems and obviously have no marine biology degree, that's a pretty big sacrifice to the ecosystems.

I'm only inquiring because, as I have a professional degree in a "land steward related field", and wonder if perhaps I, in the long run am doing more damage than good. Negative side - Most stock seems to be from the wild pos.  How many people can I educate towards the value of the reef ecosystem… Sorry for dragging on, but I won't buy from now on unless I'm assured it's captive stock.

From: WS

I do not think that you are dragging on. I think that this is an exceedingly important subject and I know that a lot of other people feel the same. Personally I am exceedingly careful to try not to buy anything which I do not feel that I can keep and where possible try to buy captive raised stock. There are however far too many people who do not do their homework before making purchases and do not seem to be concerned that their creatures fail to thrive. Your concern and thoughtfulness does you credit. Stick to it.

From: BF

I feel if the rock and livestock come from an area which was man made, such as TBsaltwater, taking tons of dead dry coral rubble, finding a plot of sea floor and dumping their rock there, that it is helpful to the environment. What we are taking is not hurting any natural occurring reefs or taking away from them, and probably is beneficial to other ocean life in the area. Fish caught in that area would never have been there if not for the man made "reef", so I don't see how it would upset the natural ecosystem in that area.

I totally agree with you - anytime you can take a derelict land or sea area and reclaim it and introduce with stock that will enhance the environment is good. I certainly commend the company that you mention that is doing this and will be a strong customer of theirs. The key seems to be researching your plan of what you intend to buy. However, in our city there is a reef store which has stock coming in quickly and dying in the tanks all of the time.  I haven't bought from them because the store doesn't look very well kept.  Where do places like that get their stock, their prices are dirt-cheap.