stocking your tank from the ocean

yeah and doctors are already pissed enough at what happened in america today.

while i support your idea of not harvesting from coral reefs, i believe it is wrong to pick apart and bash individuals and/or businesses, let alone a 3reef sponsor. IMO your statement was polite and informative until you targeted SWC.

props to reefsparky for layin down the law

 

I agree and disagree with this to some extent, I have harvested some corals from a non protected reef in Trinidad. When I have collected, it's always very small fragmented pieces, say a rock of maybe 3 inches with some zoanthids. We also have stylophora and gorgonians in abundance but not worth collecting IMO. Before making broad statements that this is wrong, I think anyone harvesting is well aware what they are doing, including myself. For instance, knowing what shouldn't be taken and what can be taken in small quantities. Also, whenever I go diving, I go with frags of my own corals to plant on the reef in hopes that they would grow. So far, I have planted some GSP, a small toadstool, some hairy mushrooms and some zoanthids that we don't have in Trinidad. All of which have not ever been reported on our reefs. Like I said, I have never seen anything other than blue, green and red zoanthids, green and brown polyp stylophora and about 3 species of gorgonians.
If neither corals nor fish were once collected, none of us would be having this conversation today.
Also the Centropyge bispinosus is hardly likely a tank bred specimen.
If any activists came by me wanting to spend thousands of dollars on captive bred/propagated specimen, I would immediately deem all my livestock "captive grown" and so would most other business men.

 

FORENOTE: Doog, your post did not cause what I'm about to say. It was just the straw the broke the camel's back so I'm finally going to post.

What's good for the goose is good for the gander. On 3Reef, lay off the people who make your "slice of the ocean" possible. 3Reef also has collectors, cherry pickers, transshippers, importers, wholesalers, LFS owners, and people in many other positions related to the hobby. Depending on the position, most understand CITES, import laws, collection restrictions, and are law-abiding citizens. They are members of SECORE, Coral List Serve, work with NGO's in foreign countries to improve, not only the collection practices for the benefit of the animals, but also for the benefit of the (often subsistence) farmers and fisherman. When clams and corals are maricultured in other countries, are hobbiests teaching them? Nope. It's the so-called 'evil' people who are taking things out of the sea.

 

You know I used to feel that it was wrong, but the way I look at it now is at least most of them are being responsible about doing it and have all the necessary permits and licenses.

Like someone here said you want to save the reef and oceans, don't complain about the guys taking a few things for their tanks, stop the guys that are over fishing, using drag nets, dumping crap in the ocean, swimming in the ocean after lathering up with all that wonderful SPF100 lotion thats killing the reefs, they are the ones doing the damage.

 

As long as it is well-regulated I don't see what the issue is. I think I would prefer to have captive-bred and aquacultured, or maricultured inhabitants but that's just not realistic for what most people want.

I also do like the fact that some of the countries who "own" these parts of the reefs get to benefit from the trade. I believe most of them are relatively poor so I'm glad to see them get some nice benefits from their natural resources as long as it's done sustainably and responsibly.

If you're angry about countries exploiting their natural resources for their benefit then you have a pretty long list of other industries to have an issue with as well. Just trying to keep it in perspective.

 

I agree with you 100%.

 

I'm pretty sure this is more detrimental to the ecosystem than removing specimens

 

It could be if he was taking a frag from another part of the world and replanting it. However, he's collecting and replacing from the same place.

 

Yes, Billyboy I agree, I think tank breed fish etc.. should be kept in a tank, the same goes for the ocean. Whats bred there stays there. By 2065, the way things are going with global warming etc.. There will be no coral reefs.

 

from the way I read it inwall, it sounds like that is exactly what is being done... taking corals from other parts of the world and planting them where there are no reports of them being natively... maybe I misread...