How often have you stood in front of an aquarium at your local fish store, staring at the goniopora on display in the tank? As an informed hobbyist, odds are you stood there thinking it's a shame the goniopora was there, as it's fated to an almost certain death in an aquarium. Knowing that it's currently impossible to meet it's needs for long-term success, you make the conscious decision not to purchase it. You know you're doing the right thing, that the only reason the store stocks unsuitable livestock like goniopora is to make a profit. If people don't buy it, the store won't stock it. Feeling good that you've done your part, that you've made a conscious and ethical decision not to purchase a doomed animal, you start to turn away.

"I'll take that one," the customer next to you says to the salesperson, pointing at the goniopora you were looking at.

The intent of this editorial is not to label the reef aquarium hobby as unethical. Rather, it's intent is to address the fact that, regardless of how we might wish otherwise, the hobby does damage to the environment. I understand a later editorial by a different author will discuss what the hobby would be like and how it would survive if there were import bans, so I won't address those issues. Instead, I'll content myself with trying to show you why regulation is needed. 

I am not arguing that other factors don't cause far more damage to the world's reefs then the aquarium hobby. I contend, however, that it's irresponsible for the hobby to blithely continue to operate ignoring the current damaged state of the world's reefs -- especially when some elementary reforms could make a substantive difference.  According to the findings of the Coral Reef Task Force, "..estimates are that 10% of all coral reefs are degraded beyond recovery; 30% are in critical condition and may die within 10 to 20 years… And if current pressures continue unabated, another 30% may perish completely by 2050."  (see the links at the end of this editorial for a listing of relevent documentation). Accordingly, it seems particularly shortsighted to refuse to accept reforms in the hobby and related industries. 

There is a perception amongst aquarium hobbyists that the marine aquarium industry is largely blameless, that while it may be collecting livestock it's actually removing comparatively little when held against the damages caused by other sources. Unlike those other sources, however, the aquarium hobby is not indiscriminate in the damage it does. It collects certain species while ignoring others. While an area of the reef may seem relatively pristine, the fact may be that local populations of key animals have been completely decimated. 

The Coral Reef Task force notes that, around Hawaii, the abundance of the top 10 aquarium fish collected has been reduced in just two decades by 59%. Certain species especially targeted by the aquarium trade, such as Yellow Tangs, have had their populations reduced by as much as 80%. The CRTF also makes mention of the secondary habitat destruction caused by the overharvest of herbivores (like the aforementioned Yellow Tangs); removal of these species causes reef areas to be overrun and smothered by algae. 

In the draft report "Coral Reefs at Risk and the Role of Trade" , again by the US Coral Reef Task Force, several similar statements are found. Most damning is, "Recent surveys of 300 reefs worldwide found that key target species of commercial interest were absent or present in very low numbers, in almost all of the reefs surveyed. This suggests that almost all reefs have been affected by overharvesting, and that there may not be any pristine reefs left in the world." 

Another  example of this sort of thing is overcollection of the banggai cardinal. Tullock discusses this in a recent column in Aquarium Frontiers online. While it's mouthbrooding nature makes it a wonderful candidate for breeding in the home aquarium, it translates to a low reproductive rate in the wild. Coupled with the extremely small range of the fish and it's limited numbers, it should come as a surprise to hear that over five thousand banggai cardinals are caught and shipped every single week. Dr Gerald Allen, who rediscovered and popularized the fish in 1995, has concluded that the current rate of harvest is unsustainable. The Banggai cardinalfish has been proposed to be listed as "Critically Endangered" by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), emphasizing the deep degree of concern among conservationists for its future. At the moment, however, it's collection is unimpeded. The numbers of this fish in it's natural environment are dwindling dramatically, and the only pressure it's population suffers from is collection for the aquarium trade. 

Fautin and Allen in "Field Guide to Anemonefish and their Host Sea Anemones" talk about the apparent exceedingly low recruitment rate of host anemones,  but they also go on to talk about how collection of wild clownfish is also having significant negative impact on wild anemones. Their entire text is linked at the end of this editorial. Similar to host anemones, the group of corals called large-polyp corals (LPS) also have extremely low recruitment rates. Overcollection of these species is not only decimating the current populations, but removing the parents of what would be following generations. 

I could cite further examples, but I hope I've made my point. Regardless of the other sources of damage to the coral reef, we have documented cases showing specific damage caused solely by the aquarium trade. Anyone who takes the time to investigate should see this. With a frank assessment of the fact that our hobby causes damage to the world's coral reefs must come acceptance of our responsibility to minimize the damage we do.  Otherwise, I believe our hobby is doomed. 

Many hobbyists feel that education of other hobbyists is the key, that they can encourage others to only make informed and ethical purchases.  Unfortunately, for every hobbyist who makes a concerted effort to learn the right way to do things, the moral and ethical choices they should make, ten more will simply walk into their local pet shop, point to a coral and say, "I want that one." As long as anyone can purchase coral, folks who don't have any business even keeping feeder goldfish will be killing corals. The usual answer is that most of these hobbyists don't stay with the hobby long, thus minimizing the damage they actually do. Individually, this may be true -- but taken as a group, the damage they cause is huge. There also seems to be no shortage of folks who will behave this way, thus insuring that for every one of them who leaves the hobby, someone else will take their place. 

Ther perception of a great many hobbyists is that the marine aquarium hobby polices itself. Nothing could be further from the truth. Many think that if a business is a member of the American Marinelife Dealers Association (AMDA), it follows a set of ethical guidelines. The truth is that all it takes for the most unethical reeflife dealer to become a member of AMDA is to send them a check. AMDA members are in no way monitored or policed by the organization. While there are those in AMDA who would like to see this change, currently the organizations stamp of approval is in no way an assurance that a given dealer is environmentally responsible. There is absolutely no existing system to monitor or regulate marinelife dealers. In fact, corals aren't even covered under cruelty to animals laws -- invertebrates are specifically excluded from coverage under those laws. 

So here we have an industry that causes specific, irrefutable damage to the environment, fueled by a body of purchasers that includes many who simply will not make an effort to educate themselves, or refuse to behave responsibly even when they know better. Not that many of us don't do the right thing, the responsible thing -- but taken as a whole the hobby does not.  For every hobbyist who trades acropora frags, there's a dozen killing off a couple of seahorses every few weeks and continuously buying replacements. For every hobbyist who enjoys reading those expensive books on aquarium husbandry, there's a dozen who take the sales clerk's word when he says that of course you don't need special equipment. For every hobbyist who will spend the few bucks more to purchase a captive bred clownfish from a hatchery like C-Quest, there's a hundred who would rather spend that $1.50 less and buy wildcaught. 

I absolutely believe the future of the hobby lies with regulation and import bans on key species (those with low recruitment rates, low population numbers or are otherwise not suitable). I also completely believe the hobby can survive and, indeed, thrive with regulation in place. Regulation and key species banning do not spell the end of the reef aquarium hobby -- just an end to the unconscionable irresponsibility and waste so prevalent in the hobby and industry currently. 

It's not enough anymore for us, as hobbyists, just to take responsibility for our own actions. The time has come for us to take responsibility for the evils of the hobby taken as a whole . Twenty five years of consumer awareness campaigns have done little to stop cyanide fishing; it's time to admit they won't lead to a more responsible hobby, either. I don't want to have to think of my hobby as doing needless damage to an environment I love -- but I refuse to pretend I'm blind, so I have to admit the damage it causes.  The next time you're in a Petco and you cringe at the horrid conditions of their saltwater fish, realize that if the hobby were regulated the shop would be answerable for it's livestock's condition, or they'd loose their license to carry it. The next time you see a salesclerk at your local shop telling a customer how hardy goniopora is, think about the fact that an import ban on unsuitable species would mean that coral wouldn't have to die for no purpose whatsoever. The next time someone talks about the damage to the world's reefs, realize both that your hobby is partly responsible -- and that it doesn't have to be. 

http://coralreef.gov/CRTFAxnPlan9.PDF -- this link leads to the Coral Reef Task Force report to Congress, in Adobe Acrobat format. It's something every reef aquarist needs to read.

http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/aqfm/1999/july/eq/default.asp -- Tullock's Aquarium Frontier's column that discusses overcollection of the banggai cardinal.

http://www.biodiversity.uno.edu/ebooks/intro.html - Fautin & Allen's "Field Guide to Anemonefish and their Host Sea Anemones", in it's entirety.

http://www.reefsource.com -- Mary Middlebrook's site, she maintains an excellent collection of links to currently proposed legislation, bills and reports concerning the aquarium hobby.

CORAL REEFS AT RISK AND THE ROLE OF TRADE --   U.S. Coral Reef Task Force Report