FishBase

FishBase 2015: Scott Dowd

• Report rights infringement
• published: 04 Nov 2015
• views: 196

Scott Dowd, New England Aquarium, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, gave a lecture on "The home aquarium industry as an instrument of conservation" Abstract: Throughout the tropics many communities base their livelihoods on the capture and export of living aquatic organisms for the global trade in specimens for the home aquarium hobby. This industry, based on the collection of living animals for the sole purpose of a hobby, entertainment, parlour decor, is indeed controversial. In fact EU Parliamentary Members are currently considering legislative controls, especially in regard to wild-sourced stocks. For more than 25 years, Project Piaba has been studying the aquarium fishery of the Rio Negro Basin, Amazonas State, Brazil. Findings have shown that the fishery represents little to no threat to fish populations. Beyond that, the fishery resource provides the basis of livelihoods for the majority of regional residents. Human welfare is directly tied to environmental welfare via the fish, which has resulted in a very effective driver of environmental stewardship. The protection from fishers is directed towards the entire ecosystem that the fishes depend on. The forest ecosystem is also critical habitat for many critically endangered species. There are incalculable quantities of carbon sequestered in the trees protected by the fishers and the tropical forest continues atmospheric scrubbing processes. Outcomes: poverty alleviation, protection of areas of critical biological importance that would otherwise likely be lost, and mitigation for climate change. These accomplishments that have been documented in the Rio Negro fishery are not unique to this region. It is clear that variations of the model exist throughout the tropics. Zoos and aquariums are in an extremely good position to foster these beneficial outcomes by showcasing these examples to our visitors in our programs and exhibits. By fostering the market demand for beneficial aquarium fishes, we can have a positive impact on people and ecosystems in regions most important to us. FishBase is the world's largest encyclopedia of fish, freely available on the net. The Swedish office every year holds an annual public symposium on a current theme related to fish biology, fish systematics and fish ecology. FishBase Symposium 2015 was held in Stockholm, Monday 19th October, in the Main Auditorium of the Swedish Museum of Natural History, and the theme was CAPTIVATING FISHES (fängslande fiskar), a pun referencing both keeping fishes in captivity, and the captivating, fascinating, nature of fishes. Today science and technology have advanced to the point that it is now possible to keep almost any aquatic organism in recirculating systems. FishBase Sweden invited seven experts to give talks on different aspects of what captive maintenance and breeding has meant for conservation, for food production, and for the aquarium hobby. CC-BY-NC