RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN © 2015

www.PosterPresentations.com

Fish have been kept around humans for thousands of years, when Egyptian pharaohs would keep them in small ponds. From there, in asian culture, it was very popular to keep koi fish or carp. The ancient Chinese were the first to breed specialized carp and goldfish which they kept inside in ceramic vessels, just like our modern day fishbowls. (ChinaMinutes, 2016) The Chinese would keep these colorful fish around because they believed the fish would bring good luck, wealth or other good fortunes to their house hold. In more recent times, fish keeping is still a very practiced hobby with about 10 million tropical fish brought over to the US every year. (Actman, 2018). The United States have been the number one buyer for tropical fish, coral, and live rocks and other specimen for decades now, having 80% of all live coral and rock trade starting in 1996. (Whips, 2016). The current industry brings in about 200 million dollars a year with most of the specimens coming to America.

This picture shows a few of the kinds of fish that are commonly traded

When It Started

Where Do These Fish Come from?

Amphiphrioninae, more commonly known as “Clown Fish” are one of the most commonly traded fish. Its popularity rose when the movie, “Finding Nemo”, released. Although the movie was meant to be a comedy for children, it also carried a very serious and sad subject as well.The movie was about a baby clownfish who is taken from his home and his family and sold to a dentist in Sydney, Australia. Clownfish are bright orange fish that live in sea anemones for protection from other animals. Because of this, clownfish are affected twice as hard by fish trade. Not only are they taken when they are babies, but their homes are being harvested and sold as well.

The Not So Funny Search For Clown Fish

Most of the fish caught and put on the market are captured illegally, using cyanide to stun and immobilize the fish which makes them easy to scoop up. 90% of the 11 million fish brought to the United States are caught using these illegal tactics. (Bale, 2017). Using these harsh chemicals is not only harmful to the targeted and captured fish, but also the environment and living organisms around at the time. Cyanide is usually crushed up and sprayed at an area that the fish are in. This method of distribution is not very precise and quite often surrounding coral and even other organisms like fish suffer. Cyanide over time will kill the zooxanthellae which will in turn kill the coral.

Works Cited

There are over 1800 different kinds of fish that are commonly imported and sold to fish keepers or people with aquariums. These fish are pulled out of natural habitats all around the world and relocated into smaller tanks usually in warehouses where fish keepers can browse and purchase them. Many of these fish are very common in the wild and collecting large amounts of them have no drastic effect on the habitat and other species living in them. However some fish have been collected to the point where they are now endangered species. Most of the estimated 2,000 species of fish and coral traded come from coral reefs located in over 40 countries, but most of the fish come from Indonesia and the Philippines. Though the industry is huge and booming, very little record is kept of how many fish are taken from each reef, when and what tactics they use to capture these fish. The lack of documentation and regulation is one of the major problems that is allowing the traders to infringe so heavily on these animals habitats and ecosystem.

This picture shows the many types of fish that are seen in tanks

Marine Biology Ryan Villena

The Effects of Tropical Fish Trade

A graph showing that the Philippines is where most fish are taken from (Garthwaite, 2012)

Cyanide Catches

Coral ReefsThe environment that these fish live in is sought after just as much as they are. Collectors pay top dollar for colorful coral, rocks, and other marine species for their tanks. Marine environments in places like Fiji and Indonesia, who exports about 900,000 stoney corals per year, are heavily affected by the demand for these living organisms.(Bruckner, 2015) Coral Reefs not only have to deal with being uprooted from their homes, but also with bleaching. Bleaching is a corals response to stress by sudden changes in conditions, such as light, temperature or nutrients. Due to the stress, the coral spews out its symbiotic algae, leaving the coral white and severely damaged or even dead.

Healthy vs. Bleached Coral

A fisherman spraying cyanide over an area of coral which is bleached and dead. (Sakashita, 2016).

Conservation EffortsDue to the growth in the industry and the damage it has done to the ecosystem, organizations have been formed to regulate collecting and selling marine organisms. Things like cyanide fishing have been made illegal in reef zones such as Indonesia and the Philippines. The United States has also created a law called the Lacey Act, which makes it illegal to purchase any wildlife that was captured in illegal ways. Recently, there has been a petition to make importers have to test and certify that the fish they are bringing to America have not been caught with cyanide, but nothing has been made official yet. Even with these rules and laws put in place, the mistreatment of these animals is still very unregulated because it would be very expensive to enforce. The amount of money and resources it would take to monitor every coral reef and fishing operation is too steep and no country has been able to crack down on the people breaking these laws.

Actman, Jani. “See How Fish Get From Coral Reefs to Your Aquarium Tank.” National Geographic, National Geographic Society, 29 Mar. 2018, news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/03/wildlife-watch-fish-aquarium-trade/.

Analysis: U.S. pet trade imports 6 million tropical fish exposed to cyanide poisoning each year. (2016, Jun 16). Targeted News Service Retrieved from http://libraryaccess.sdmiramar.edu:8080/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.libraryaccess.sdmiramar.edu/docview/1797460592?accountid=38871

Bale, Rachel. “The Horrendous Way Fish Are Captured for Your Aquarium-With Cyanide.” National Geographic, National Geographic Society, 1 Aug. 2017, news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/160310-aquarium-saltwater-tropical-fish-cyanide-coral-reefs/.

Bruckner, Andrew W. “New Threat to Coral Reefs: Trade in Coral Organisms.” Issues in Science and Technology, Issues in Science and Technology, 15 May 2015, issues.org/bruckner/.

Garthwaite, Josie. “Counting Nemo: A Deep Look at the Aquarium Trade.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 21 May 2012, green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/21/counting-nemo-a-deep-look-at-the-aquarium-trade/.

“International Trade in Coral and Coral Reef Species.” United States Coral Reef Task Force, www.fws.gov/coralreef/trade.cfm.

Sakashita, Miyoko. “Finding Solutions to Cyanide Fishing.” Medium, Center for Biological Diversity, 1 July 2016, medium.com/center-for-biological-diversity/finding-solutions-to-cyanide-fishing-4560d8f4622d.

“The Enduring Art of Fish-Keeping in China.” ChinaMinutes, 17 Nov. 2016, www.chinaminutes.com/british/obs/wm/20161117/247778.html.

Whips, Nick. “Analysis: U.S. Pet Trade Imports 6 Million Tropical Fish Exposed to Cyanide Poisoning Each Year ‘Finding Dory’ Expected to Fuel Consumer Demand for Royal Blue Tangs, Other Wild-Caught Fish.” Ocean Plastics Pollution, www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2016/cyanide-fishing-06-16-2016.html.

Wolf, Shaye. “Clownfish That Inspired Finding Nemo Closer to Endangered Species Act Protection.” Clownfish That Inspired Finding Nemo Closer to Endangered Species Act Protection, Center for Biological Diversity, 2 Sept. 2014, www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2014/clownfish-09-02-2014.html.