Collecting wild fish (AKA sponsorship, Part 3)

[David_Koran at HQ02.USACE.ARMY.MIL]

THE DISTRIBUTION NETWORK

Last year I tried to put together a bid with about 15 people for a N&RSC.
It involved a proposal involving importation and breeding agreements and
some effort for collection points for reared fish prior to shipping.  We had
about 3-4 cells of volunteers spread across the country (but John Ashcroft
closed us down, just kidding!). Where we lacked volunteers was in the
selling and distribution of fish back to the membership.  Everyone involved
knew it was critical to get the N&RSC up and running again, it was just that
no one had the stomach to take the abuse associated with the final
coordination, shipping and "customer satisfaction" issues.  

There has been some discussion of Affiliate Clubs and the AKA varying from
the clubs do wonders for the AKA and get nothing to the clubs are leaches
and get everything from the AKA and provide nothing in return.  As a  person
who started a very successful Affiliate Club 30 years ago and one who was
instrumental in "restarting" another and an active officer in a very
successful 3rd I think Bill's comments were the best on the subject.  We
have to understand that this sort of mirrors our state and federal
governments, but even at the state level (or even local) do we agree.  If
you are a "state's righter" you think you know best what to do with your
money!  The AKA is our umbrella organization.  We use our collective
resources to advance the hobby.  It means providing literature, establishing
the means to do things to benefit the hobby.  The Affiliate Clubs on the
other hand (mainly because of size of this country) provide a means for many
of us to meet face to face on a somewhat regular basis.  (Maybe relaxing the
percentage members requirement might need to be looked into).  

When the KFN meets, it usually means the whole organization can meet on a
monthly (or similarly regular basis).  We physically cannot do that so the
Affiliate Club meetings are the next best thing only they just don't usually
have sufficient people to carry out the gamute of functions that a national
organization can address.  Because those clubs are small, they tend to be
dominated by a few members and their interests some times dominate what the
club does.  It is very difficult for all to be truly "friends" yet the club
may be too small to "hide".  Finally, simply because of size, it is too easy
to saturate the club.

Rather than model themselves as smaller versions of AKA, Affiliate Clubs are
maybe better suited to be a social organization but it should not prevent
them from developing a political stand and offering that back up to the BOT.
Use the AKA resources, screen the Video offerings, show the slides.  Develop
programs or presentations, foster collecting trips, exchange husbandry tips
and use your collective buying power.  If you are in a stable club you
should realize breeding and selling fish internal gets stale fast.  Work on
efforts to exchange fish or market your efforts to other clubs.

But as to fish conservation or species maintenance, it won't work in
Affiliate Clubs.  Personally, I think the goals of the KCC are great, but
the protocol suggested won't get you there.  The missing piece in all of our
discussions (also as a solution for the on-line F&E to some extent) is the
formation of specialty or study groups.  In the past they have been attacked
as elitist but with weblinks and AKA sponsorship this might be the time.
Even if you belong to an Affiliate Club it doesn't mean your interests are
the club's interests and you can get turned off very quickly when the fish
you really love and worked like hell to produce only go for an insulting
couple of bucks in the club action.  The Specialty Group level may be the
link between the AKA and the Affiliate Clubs.

In the KCC Epiplatys group they are tracking several species which they deem
in trouble in the hobby.  Remember, that is in the hobby and stateside.  It
doesn't mean that they are trouble in the wild or even in other countries.
What the KCC genus group should be is a part of a genus study group
facilitated by the AKA website as the "meeting place" or at least
directional arrow.  You can have a bulletin board established or simply use
a e-mail mailing list (yeah, not everyone is connected -- but surely you
have a phone and long distance rates may even be cheaper than your local
rate these days!).  Either do it ad hoc or establish a committee (Tyrone
can't head 'em all!).  Establish your species lists, monitor species census
numbers, set up a trade list (password protect if you think necessary),
suggest species in need of focus, narrow your goals.  But by all means,
exchange information.  

However, what I would really love for these "study groups" to do is
establish valid species lists of names, subspecies, locations and/or
collecting information.  While they keep telling me it is too hard to do
(the BOT that is, not some of our database gurus) is develop a database of
species with all of that information.  It becomes part of a parent database
hosted on the main AKA site and functions much like a spell checker.  You
use it to populate an on-line F&E list, establish labels for fish shows
and/or reference it when you have questions in general.  Ultimately each
specialty group establishes a database administrator who coordinates the
update of their particular section of the database.  Their shared database
may end up just being names but their group may also include breeding
information, census information or whatever they think helps maintain the
killies that comprise the specialty group.

Alright, I will take my Kaopectate dose for the day and see how this strikes
you all.

Dave Koran


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