Corals; Where do they come from?

Discussion in 'Reef Aquarium Articles and How To's' started by Dr.Fragenstein, Dec 9, 2008.

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  1. tatted4ever

    tatted4ever Clown Trigger

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    would be wild if they made a movie like blow about transporting illegal corals... Id go see it
     
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  3. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    Just for a FYI to other readers:

    Bureau Of Fisheries And Aquatic Resources - ONLINE

    FWIW I worked for a guy the not only outed the CN trade in PI in the early 80's, he also was instrumental in the banning of Muro-ami and trained hundreds of divers in PI on net collecting techniques.
     
  4. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    Forward them to US F&WS. Self policing will give us a much better stance then the current "let's see how long this can go on until all coral imports are out right banned". We've skated by for years in this trade and thus far a dozen bills haven't made it out of committee. It only takes one to end it all and with HR 669 being rewritten and given the current FED attitude towards invasive species, the writing is on the wall.
     
  5. ermano

    ermano Zoanthid

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    Wow excellent article Doc!!! Real informative. It's good to get people informed about things like this because it gives a real meaning to the hobby. It's not just a tank with salty water and a few "nemo's" but a fully living ecosystem that we try to mimic and understand to our fullest extent. I agree to an extent with what Bogie said a few pages back...that it could really not matter at all. There are essentially more important things in life. But this is what makes a hobby, a hobby.

    hob⋅by  [hob-ee]
    –noun, plural -bies.
    1. an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation: Her hobbies include stamp-collecting and woodcarving.

    It's something you enjoy doing, us aquarists get satisfaction (a great deal) when we feed our fish...see that our corals have grown...watch things progress as they are supposed to. BUT notice in the definition it says, "...not as a main occupation." Just think about that. Anywho, great article Doc!!!
     
  6. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    One man's hobby is another man's job!!! If it weren't for us that work in the trade, there would be no hobby :)
     
  7. infamous

    infamous Corkscrew Tentacle Anemone

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    You're obviously not a scientist ::)

    This is a straw man argument and also caters to faulty emotional appeal. You are trying to appeal to pity, compassion, and natural willingness to help the unfortunate, which are particularly hard to resist.

    What have you done to help a 6 year old kid in a sweat shop in china?

    That issue has nothing to do the with conservation of corals. I perfer to buy frags from local reefers rather than ones harvested from nature. There are still new species to be discovered and research to be done to see if there are any benifical things we can get from corals.

    There is not much we can do to china, except go to war with them. If we stop buying products from china suddenly, our economy would suffer because of reduced specialization and opportunity cost, just like North Korea.

    I have no interest in helping 6 year old kids in china. I hope i will be able to help kids in the US someday.


    "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." - Albert Einstein
     
    Last edited: Nov 16, 2009
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  9. johnmaloney

    johnmaloney 3reef Sponsor

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    did you turn that importer in and your old partner in?


    anybody have any opinions on octocorals and softies? different treatment because of their nature? same treatment? ok as long as carefully regulated?
     
  10. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    I never, repeat, never needed to turn anyone of my suppliers in as none were doing anything wrong ( we were VERY selective with whom we did business with). None ever offered me illegal items.

    The gentleman I worked for never did anything wrong whilst I was working with him so no again, never turned him in :lol: I sent him a nasty email when the "blue passer" deal went down.

    Had either given me a reason I would have. By giving them any business at all you are supporting their illegal activities just as much as their legal activities ;)
     
  11. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    If your asking if I turned in the local wholesaler who brought in the PI corals over Christmas, nope, I had no clue he was smuggling that shipment but he is black listed now at any rate. He was known to smuggle and was being watched.
     
  12. johnmaloney

    johnmaloney 3reef Sponsor

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    They are just solicitors, I dont transship anything, or get anything from the Pacific really, except my engineer goby, and the occasional firefish at the pet store. Haven't made any purchases from any of the transhippers, or any wholesalers outside of Florida for that matter. I am really into the Caribbean stuff. Never really been a fan of purchasing wild hard corals. I realize now it is legal from some locations and illegal form others, but that has more to do with a stroke of the politician's pen than a difference in their ecological importance. For me at least, I leave hard coral where they are on natural reefs and look for "artificial" sources. I think mariculture is a good way to go, throw some rocks in there, seed it even with some coral frags, wait a few years and then sell the coral. I would be okay with that. I realize the aquarium industry has very little impact the the reefs aside from substrate collection, and that other forces, (pollution, mining, nature), do far more damage than the hobby could ever do, but I just don't mess with it. They have a few those mariculture operations in Bali, I was considering purchasing from them when/if I opened a pet store. I have never really been into true corals anyway though, so there isn't a real impetus to get them for me at least.
     
    Last edited: Nov 17, 2009