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Re: NFC: Too much awareness?
>
> Can you imagine what would happen if our native fishes became
> commercially important (e.g. a sharp increase in popularity)?
> Good, bad, or ugly? I'd like to hear opinions on this.
>
>
> Prost,
>
> Martin
So what do we do Martin? Designate ourselves as the only ones who know
anything about natives, or have the right to collect them, or to tell
others that they have no right to collect? Do we allow beautiful fish
such as the Topeka Shiner to die in obscurity because we were so arrogant
as to believe that WE had the only answer to the problem of natives in
aquaria? Do we just say 'sorry, your time of existence is up...too bad'
to all those species that have or more importantly COULD have been saved
with the 'demon' of commercilization? It's just NOT that cut and dried.
And it is the utmost in arrogance to say 'lets just keep it our little
secret...' Have you never purchased a fish in your life? Don't you
realize that fish is native to somewhere? Do we put on such an attitude
that the most imortant players in conservation: the landowners, public
and government agencies all disregard us as a bunch of elitist flakes?
Some species will NEVER be commercially viable...I'm the first one to
admit it. Some species should NEVER be collected by anyone without VERY
sound and specific scientific purposes for doing so...I'm also the first
to agree on that. But NO species to be commercialized? NO, I'm whole
heartedly against that. Wherether it's Fathead minnows used in fishing
or 'Rosey Reds' to feed the Arrowana commercialization is already a
reality. I personally would prefer people buy their Ornagthroat darters
at the LFS raised at a commercial fish farm rather than going out and
depleting wild populations...but that is a long ways off and until then we
have to be the proponents of ETHICAL AND RESPONSIBLE collecting. Open to
all.
Luke McClurg
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