Live Fish Trade - Aquaculture

Aquaculture

In an effort to address the damage inflicted on coral reef eco-systems and fish stocks, aquaculture is being utilized to reduce pressure on coral reefs. However, initial efforts to farm grouper have met with significant challenges. There are difficulties with fragile grouper seed that can make it more expensive than wild caught larvae, which can affect natural replenishment rates. Additionally, there are problems with finding suitable food, disease and cannibalism (Johannes and Ogburn). Efforts are also being made in regards to the aquarium fish trade. Juvenile fish are being captured and raised specifically for the industry. However, there are debates as to whether this practice will affect replenishment rates. “The age of the juveniles is pivotal to the debate, harvesting of postlarvae from the water column is considered to have a much lower (negligible) impact on rates of replenishment than the removal of the larger juveniles from benthic habitats because the postlarvae have yet to undergo severe mortality” (Bell, Doherty and Hair). If studies determine that the capture of juveniles is sustainable, it may help in mitigating the damage from cyanide fishing.

It should also be noted that aquaculture production, specifically grouper rearing is rapidly expanding in Asia. From 1998 to 2001 the Indo-Pacific countries involved in aquaculture; China, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand witnessed a 119 percent increase in output (FAO fishery Information Data and Statistics Unit 2003). The explosion in this practice can most likely be attributed to the large profit margins that can be derived in very little time. It is estimated that the majority of farms after annual returns can be paid back in less than one year (Siar et al. 2002). In comparison to other species of fish such as the Milkfish, the Grouper, because of high demand is able to garner high rates of return, in order to earn 1,000 dollars a grouper farm would only have to raise 400 kilograms in contrast to 5,000 kilograms of Milkfish (Ibid).