Related Posts
-
CORAL New Issue “FREE THE FISHES” Inside Look
-
New Hope for Hawaii's Closed Marine Aquarium Fishery
-
Hawaii's Fishy Double Standard
-
URGENT: Hawaii's Aquarium Fishermen Ask For Your Support
-
VIDEO: Coral Bleaching, Recovery, Succession & Obliteration. Fiji: 2000-2016
-
Hawaii's Aquarium Fishery Is Shuttered, Pending Review
-
Breaking News: Hawaii's Aquarium Fishery Suffers Another Setback
-
Dynasty Marine Leads Sustainability Research in Florida Aquarium Fishery
-
Call For Support from Hawaiian Fisherman and Marine Fish Wholesaler
-
Support Our Hawaiian Fishermen!
About the author
7 Comments
-
January 19, 2018
Great Article !!
Everyone get the word out that this “fake science” cannot be tolerated. -
January 20, 2018
As a member of a reef aquarium education based club, a marine aquarium hobbyist, a certified scuba diver, a business owner, and a family man, this whole thing outrages me. If 1/10 the effort of these movements was put towards sustainability education, human waste management, and marine research we would be much better of. This is just silly. I have seen nearly a half million fish on any one reef on any one dive trip. Anything that gets humanity interested in the ocean and its health is a good thing at this point and by that I mean aquariums with live ocean fish in them.
-
January 20, 2018
Sad to see any aquarium supply folks playing the “fake” Trump card, this is a failing tactic. Why are there not any fresh studies that show how reductions in herbivores are bad for coral reefs? Because it is a known fact, few funds available to prove the obvious.
The data that would address the local issue here would cosist of a coral reef monotoring study that compares reef tracts with and without collection being allowed, NOT herbovore counts. This is all about the corals, in jeopardy all over the planet. Have you ever visted the SPAs in the FL Keys? You don’t even need to get wet to see the hook and liners, fishing boats clustered just outside the SPA boundaries, hoping to land one of the many large game fish to be found in those otherwise delpeted shallow waters. When a reef is degraded past a crical threshold, it undergoes a phase change to a less biodiverse system where the herbivores do pretty well for a time because the former coral colonies become algae-covered dead rocks. Don’t only count the fish, asses the ecosystem health, let’s let the swarming fishes fill the oceans to help reef recovery. Learn to give to the environment before you start taking, check the website.-
January 20, 2018
Tim, the data goes back almost 2 decades and shows that this fishery IS sustainable and that fish populations have increased. This policy change also does not affect fishing for food which takes far more fish off the reef than the aquarium trade. If we really want to help the coral reefs there are many many better places to make changes. Don’t waste energy shuttering an industry that actually WANTS to create a sustainable environment and go after the real source of the problem. Climate change, pollution, and in many places the food fishing industry. Focusing on the aquarium industry is like complaining about a hangnail while your arm is being chopped off.
-
January 31, 2018
‘It’s a known fact’ some evidence to back that up would be nice. You can’t claim a ‘known fact’ but say that there aren’t studies to prove it. I feel uncomfortable about collecting wild fish in large numbers, but legislation on environmental issues should *not* be put in place without scientific backing.
-
-
January 20, 2018
Have been diving since 1966 and having witnessed so much ocean abuse with spear guns and slurp guns, and of course the horrific decline of the reefs I can relate why a ban on collection has been placed.
Regarding the tropical collection of fish, I have seen divers with their slurp guns tear small creatures to pieces. These non pros catch just for the “sport” with most that die in transit. This is not acceptable. However, I am not including these type of sport enthusiasts with those who are true and caring collectors and those that are professionals.
I totally agree with “tightening the laws” of capturing these small creatures. Isolating the true professionals would be hard.
To protect those who are the real pros and those who are not would be difficult, however, I agree that a special collector’s license needs to be put in place that would include the passing of a course specializing in the ‘how to collect’ and what species are allowed. It should also include a sliding scale just lille sport fishing of how many and when these collections can take place.
Reading James Kanouff’s message I do whole heartily agree we should be putting more towards sustainability education, human waste management, and other necessary energy approaches.
I can read there is anger and outrage with reducing the ‘freedom of the catch’, but on that note
I would like to know how long Mr. Kanouff has been diving. For those of us who have been diving over 50 years we have seen a lot to help educate those PhDs and educators with knowledge of the past and pre decline of our oceans reefs that once had multitudes of species of fish that were so healthy swimming in those healthy reefs, but now with many species that have disappeared having never been seen it is time to make a call that may be a decision to limit what we can do to try to save what is left.Most divers may say there are millions of fish on the reefs, yet without witnessing the decline of the species that is reason for misunderstanding.
The cascade of events causing the decline is rapid without the knowledge of how to stop the destruction of all reefs world wide and yes including Hawaii.
We must change our attitude to one of protection rather than one of collection and consumption and respect limitation of once was an open ocean to one of serious decline.
-
March 27, 2018
The collection of fish can help with the overall health of the fishes in the reef by keeping populations at levels where animals aren’t starving because there’s not enough food and that’s especially for herbivores. What’s better 5 million skinny fish that are more likely to get parasites or 3 million healthy fish and a thriving reef. Responsible fishers protect the reef as that’s their lively hood and no one wins if the destroy it. I’m ok with limiting potters and moorish idols because of the fact they’re more delicate but yellow tangs thrive in aquariums as I’ve had my Sunny for over 17 years and he trusts me so much I can move him to a new tank in secs and he eats out my hand. Most of my fish are considered expert only fish and still I haven’t had a fish die in over 5 years and I have 6 leopard wrasses including 2 potters but I have over 20 years in the hobby.
-