Blog #3: Fish Collecting 101
To help with today's blog I have asked Sarah Taylor (at right) to join me. Sarah is an Aquarist at NEAq in Boston and the Trip Leader for our current expedition. She is also a very experienced diver.Bud: Sarah, why do we do these collecting trips every year?
Sarah: We do them to replenish the fishes and invertebrates in our Caribbean reef exhibits. Simply put, we are replenishing species that die off because of their natural mortality rates.
Bud: Do we need a permit to collect in the Bahamas? Are there any restrictions on what we can take?
Sarah: Yes. We work very closely with the Bahamas Ministry of Fisheries. A Bahamian official comes on board during the trip. He monitors our collecting techniques and examines our "catch." We don't take anything on the IUCN Red List - or anything that is endangered or threatened.
Bud: How is the trip going so far in terms of what we want to bring back to Boston?
Sarah: We're happily ahead of the curve! We actually have more fish on board then expected at this stage. Great!
Bud: Are we harming the reef ecosystem by pulling out these fish and invertebrates?
Sarah: We only use nets; no chemicals. We carefully avoid damaging the corals. And, we take only a very, very small number of animals relative to the size of their populations in the wild.
Bud: How will life in captivity for these animals differ from life in the wild?
Sarah: They will be very well fed and very well cared for by the staff in Boston. Generally, they live longer and grow larger than in the wild. And, of course, because any potential predators (e.g. sharks) in our tanks are well fed, their usual prey has a much better chance of surviving longer.
Bud: How does a collecting trip like this one support marine conservation efforts in the Bahamas?
Sarah: We do species and abundance surveys to help monitor the biodiversity of the reefs. We share our data with REEF (Reef Environmental Education Foundation), an organization that is working to protect the reefs throughout the Caribbean.
Bud: And, by exhibiting these animals in the New England Aquarium in Boston, we teach people about the importance of reef conservation.
Today's best finds:
4 Tobacco Fish (4-5 inches) Serranus tabacarius
1 Trumpet Fish (11-12 inches) Aulostomus maculatus (above right)
2-3 Yellowhead Wrasse (5 inches) Halichoeres garnoti
Several Fairy Basslets (1-2 inches) Gramma loreto
All in all, a great day down here in the Bahamas!
Labels: Aquarium mission, Bud Ris, catching fish, conservation, May 2008, Sarah Taylor
posted by NEAQ at
8:52 AM
12 Comments:
Only one trumpet fish?
Those are my favorite ... see if you can pick up a few more.
So all the animals in the aquarium are bigger than the ones you're seeing in the wild?
That's kind of cool for us landlubbers...
More importantly, what did the chef serve tonight?
Thanks for the info Sarah!
Great work guys!
I can't believe other people would use chemicals to catch these fish? It seems extreme and harmful to the fish and everything around it. How does that even work? I'm glad the professionals don't do that. And I'm glad you're collecting data while you're there. That way the trip is about more than just getting fish. IT's research too.
Bangai cardinal fish are on the red list and I have seen those in the Aquarium. Are you breeding those there? Where do you get them?
Also do you ever run into people collecting fish for private aquariums. Are the bahamian officials harder or easier on them?
Maybe you'll find some sunken treasure!
How many fish does the neaq collect in the wild versus aquaculture?
Hi Sarah and Bud, Great blog!
Hi,
I heard about your new shark that came from the Mystic Aquarium, will you be collecting any new sharks while you're there? Can you ship sharks?
Hi Sarah and Bud, Great blog!
Thanks
kral oyun
oyunlar
oyunlar
How many fish does the neaq collect in the wild versus aquaculture?
kral oyun
oyunlar
oyunlar
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