How much of our oceans reefs are destroyed by our hobby?

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Hello Great persons of the interwebs, I am working on a research project based around finding out if our hobby is a major factor in the destruction of coral reefs. After looking around at some reliable sources and gathering as much information as possible, I have found a massive hole in the data I need to collect. There is tons of information about the biggest factors of reef destruction, but I have not found a single place that lists the actual data behind these factors. For my paper I cant simply say that snorkel bob says the aquarium hobby is one of the largest factors, or that karen from reef2reef ( this was made up, not in reference to a real person ) said that the reef aquarium hobby is actually helping the coral reefs, I need the stats. Does anyone know where I could find the information I am seeking?

Note: This thread is not meant to be a discussion around this topic, I am simply asking to see if anyone knows reliable sources where I could find actual numbers surrounding this topic.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Doctorgori]

just a start but maybe look for some stuff on cyanide and dynamite fishing in the Philippines…. no links but that would be easy to find
thank you for the sincerity

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

just a start but maybe look for some stuff on cyanide and dynamite fishing in the Philippines…. no links but that would be easy to find
thank you for the sincerity

I did see a mention of that in a few articles, I will look further into the topic!

 

[MnFish1]

Hello Great persons of the interwebs, I am working on a research project based around finding out if our hobby is a major factor in the destruction of coral reefs. After looking around at some reliable sources and gathering as much information as possible, I have found a massive hole in the data I need to collect. There is tons of information about the biggest factors of reef destruction, but I have not found a single place that lists the actual data behind these factors. For my paper I cant simply say that snorkel bob says the aquarium hobby is one of the largest factors, or that karen from reef2reef ( this was made up, not in reference to a real person ) said that the reef aquarium hobby is actually helping the coral reefs, I need the stats. Does anyone know where I could find the information I am seeking?

Note: This thread is not meant to be a discussion around this topic, I am simply asking to see if anyone knows reliable sources where I could find actual numbers surrounding this topic.

Thanks in advance!

Here is a place to start - perhaps you've seen it: There is a 'contact for more information link at the bottom. https://www.epa.gov/coral-reefs/threats-coral-reefs

 

[MnFish1]

PS - compared to pollution surrounding cities, etc etc, the effects of the reefing hobby are probably miniscule. Which is why its hard to get data. Its also such a broad, multifactorial topic that its difficult. Another place to broaden your search would be to look at the Arguments for and against the Hawaiian and Indonesia coral bans - I looked through some of the legislation and recall seeing some statistics.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Here is a place to start - perhaps you've seen it: There is a 'contact for more information link at the bottom. https://www.epa.gov/coral-reefs/threats-coral-reefs

That was my jumping off point for all of this! I didn’t see the contact button at the bottom though, so thanks for setting me onto that.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

PS - compared to pollution surrounding cities, etc etc, the effects of the reefing hobby are probably miniscule. Which is why its hard to get data. Its also such a broad, multifactorial topic that its difficult. Another place to broaden your search would be to look at the Arguments for and against the Hawaiian and Indonesia coral bans - I looked through some of the legislation and recall seeing some statistics.

I will also look into that!

thanks for all of the help everyone

 

[zdrc]

If I were you I would focus on specific cases/places/species where legitimate scientific studies have been done. It's impossible to say in general that the reef hobby has damaged the oceans coral reefs (too broad), but it is possible to say that the reef hobby threatened the Bangaii Cardinalfish with extinction. You could look into the reasons behind import bans on livestock, corals, and live rock (e.g. why isn't Fiji live rock available any more?). I'm sure many of these bans are backed up by studies studying the impact of collection on reefs. In addition, you could look at the impact of the introduction of invasive fish (e.g. lionfish in the Atlantic) caused by reef owners.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

If I were you I would focus on specific cases/places/species where legitimate scientific studies have been done. It's impossible to say in general that the reef hobby has damaged the oceans coral reefs (too broad), but it is possible to say that the reef hobby threatened the Bangaii Cardinalfish with extinction. You could look into the reasons behind import bans on livestock, corals, and live rock (e.g. why isn't Fiji live rock available any more?). I'm sure many of these bans are backed up by studies studying the impact of collection on reefs. In addition, you could look at the impact of the introduction of invasive fish (e.g. lionfish in the Atlantic) caused by reef owners.

I like this idea, thanks for the input!

 

[damsels are not mean]

I would look for data and articles about the Hawaiian aquarium fishery. Before it went down it was one of the best places as far as studying the impact of the ornamental trade on reefs. I don't have good links but just look around. There was a study done on yellow tang populations that has been cited in some MACNA talks IIRC.

As far as corals, I don't know if there is much data but just knowing the propagation process it seems highly unlikely that reefs are really impacted at all. Most collectors will go out and skip 100 brown colonies to pick up the hyper ultra bubblegum tenuis, and they don't even usually take a whole colony. Sometimes only large fragments that were broken off by a storm or a big fish are what's needed. I don't know if you will be able to find much in that department.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

I would look for data and articles about the Hawaiian aquarium fishery. Before it went down it was one of the best places as far as studying the impact of the ornamental trade on reefs. I don't have good links but just look around. There was a study done on yellow tang populations that has been cited in some MACNA talks IIRC.

As far as corals, I don't know if there is much data but just knowing the propagation process it seems highly unlikely that reefs are really impacted at all. Most collectors will go out and skip 100 brown colonies to pick up the hyper ultra bubblegum tenuis, and they don't even usually take a whole colony. Sometimes only large fragments that were broken off by a storm or a big fish are what's needed. I don't know if you will be able to find much in that department.

I will also check the Hawaiian aquarium fishery out! I have been seeing a bit more data on fish, so I might put a focus on fish rather than coral for the paper.

 

[Opus]

I would look for data and articles about the Hawaiian aquarium fishery. Before it went down it was one of the best places as far as studying the impact of the ornamental trade on reefs. I don't have good links but just look around. There was a study done on yellow tang populations that has been cited in some MACNA talks IIRC.

As far as corals, I don't know if there is much data but just knowing the propagation process it seems highly unlikely that reefs are really impacted at all. Most collectors will go out and skip 100 brown colonies to pick up the hyper ultra bubblegum tenuis, and they don't even usually take a whole colony. Sometimes only large fragments that were broken off by a storm or a big fish are what's needed. I don't know if you will be able to find much in that department.

I agree with the coral comments. I bet more effort is put into gathering data about bleaching.

 

[albano]

Maybe contact Dr Mac, from Pacific East … he’s about to retire to his coral farm in Tonga. Should be a great source of information!

 

[jcolliii]

Frontiers | Synergistic Effects of Ocean Warming and Cyanide Poisoning in an Ornamental Tropical Reef Fish

An array of anthropogenic pressures is affecting tropical ecosystems, posing major conservation challenges for scientists, stakeholders and populations. Ille...

www.frontiersin.org

New non-native ornamental octocorals threatening a South-west Atlantic reef | Request PDF

Request PDF | New non-native ornamental octocorals threatening a South-west Atlantic reef | Invasive species are leading to ecosystem changes and socioeconomic deterioration around the globe. In 2018, unknown soft corals were noticed... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

www.researchgate.net

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2018.00080/full1

Google Scholar is your friend. Keywords are critical in returning the info you are specifically interested in.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

Frontiers | Synergistic Effects of Ocean Warming and Cyanide Poisoning in an Ornamental Tropical Reef Fish

An array of anthropogenic pressures is affecting tropical ecosystems, posing major conservation challenges for scientists, stakeholders and populations. Ille...

www.frontiersin.org

New non-native ornamental octocorals threatening a South-west Atlantic reef | Request PDF

Request PDF | New non-native ornamental octocorals threatening a South-west Atlantic reef | Invasive species are leading to ecosystem changes and socioeconomic deterioration around the globe. In 2018, unknown soft corals were noticed... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

www.researchgate.net

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2018.00080/full1

Google Scholar is your friend. Keywords are critical in returning the info you are specifically interested in.

I found that just a couple days ago, where you can search for scholarly articles, works so much better.

 

[jcolliii]

In what capacity are you doing this research? If you are affiliated with a university, you should be able to use their library databases - which subscribe to databases allowing much more full text to be returned instead of just abstracts. Also, if you live near a university, you can go to their library and search through their databases on one of the computers in the library and you should get many more full text returns. You will likely only be asked for a student ID if you were to request an interlibrary loan. At least our library computers are still logged on locally so that users don't need to provide a student ID to access the databases. All of our other public access computers around campus require user authentication.

 

[SlugSnorter]

Hello Great persons of the interwebs, I am working on a research project based around finding out if our hobby is a major factor in the destruction of coral reefs. After looking around at some reliable sources and gathering as much information as possible, I have found a massive hole in the data I need to collect. There is tons of information about the biggest factors of reef destruction, but I have not found a single place that lists the actual data behind these factors. For my paper I cant simply say that snorkel bob says the aquarium hobby is one of the largest factors, or that karen from reef2reef ( this was made up, not in reference to a real person ) said that the reef aquarium hobby is actually helping the coral reefs, I need the stats. Does anyone know where I could find the information I am seeking?

Note: This thread is not meant to be a discussion around this topic, I am simply asking to see if anyone knows reliable sources where I could find actual numbers surrounding this topic.

Thanks in advance!

we're a small hobby that targets specific fish, and is slowly switching over to aquaculutred stock. While we do have environmental factors we need to work on and improve, we are nowhere near as bad as pollution, overfishing, trawling and even chemical issues from sunscreen

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

In what capacity are you doing this research? If you are affiliated with a university, you should be able to use their library databases - which subscribe to databases allowing much more full text to be returned instead of just abstracts. Also, if you live near a university, you can go to their library and search through their databases on one of the computers in the library and you should get many more full text returns. You will likely only be asked for a student ID if you were to request an interlibrary loan. At least our library computers are still logged on locally so that users don't need to provide a student ID to access the databases. All of our other public access computers around campus require user authentication.

This is simply a middle school research paper, not trying to write my masters thesis, but I have got some great recourses here and on the google machine.

 

[AnotherReefHobbyist]

we're a small hobby that targets specific fish, and is slowly switching over to aquaculutred stock. While we do have environmental factors we need to work on and improve, we are nowhere near as bad as pollution, overfishing, trawling and even chemical issues from sunscreen

So far I have found that in very specific areas ( such as hawaii before the ban ) the hobby did have a measurable impact on certain species of fish, however the impact did not expand to the larger ecosystem. There are of course unsustainable fishing practices sometimes used ( cyanide, tnt )that can affect the ecosystem in an area however these are not a widely used practices.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Just a note when looking at data, make sure to have more up to date data. Sometimes in these documents we forget to look at the dates they were done. I know more modern practice over the last 10 years is more mariculture/aquaculture, so less impact on the reefs themselves. You can also look into the non-profit reef recovery places that could have some actual data also. They track bleaching and disease on the reefs.
Coral Reef Alliance
Coral Reef Restoration
etc.