zdrc
Active Member
Captive bred fish should definitely be prioritized.
However I think wild caught can actually be good too. People in areas where tropical fish are collected need a way to feed their families. If we monetize a healthy reef then you incentivize the locals keeping that reef healthy. A good example is the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon is being logged at an alarming rate. Perhaps one of the best ways to fight this is to monetize the sustainable collecting of wildlife from the Amazon (e.g. check out Project Piaba whose slogan is "Buy a Fish, Save a Tree!").
For this to be done properly, we need to fish responsibly. We need education and monitoring at the fisheries themselves, and we need to inform customers of the health of the fisheries.
I think there ought to be a master list of reef fish with different designations (good, mediocre, bad, and blacklisted) that reflect the overall health of that fish's fishery. An example of a blacklisted fish would be wild caught Bangaii Cardinalfish. In fact, it's quite appalling that this information isn't already easily available. For example, I have no idea if Royal Gramma Basslets are collected sustainably or not.
However I think wild caught can actually be good too. People in areas where tropical fish are collected need a way to feed their families. If we monetize a healthy reef then you incentivize the locals keeping that reef healthy. A good example is the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon is being logged at an alarming rate. Perhaps one of the best ways to fight this is to monetize the sustainable collecting of wildlife from the Amazon (e.g. check out Project Piaba whose slogan is "Buy a Fish, Save a Tree!").
For this to be done properly, we need to fish responsibly. We need education and monitoring at the fisheries themselves, and we need to inform customers of the health of the fisheries.
I think there ought to be a master list of reef fish with different designations (good, mediocre, bad, and blacklisted) that reflect the overall health of that fish's fishery. An example of a blacklisted fish would be wild caught Bangaii Cardinalfish. In fact, it's quite appalling that this information isn't already easily available. For example, I have no idea if Royal Gramma Basslets are collected sustainably or not.
