that maintaining a sustainable trade
in wild-caught organisms can be an
environmentally friendly strategy if it
provides economic incentives for fish-
ermen to keep their local
ecosystems healthy.
Before heading to
the pet store, do a
bit of homework to
find out where the de-
sired fish comes from. There
are four Marine Aquarium Council-
certified retailers in the United States—
in Florida, Illinois, Michigan and New
Jersey—where saltwater fish have been
verified to be sustainably collected or
cultured and then properly handled
throughout the supply chain. A new
licensing program should increase
the number of stores supplying MAC-
approved fish.
Reef Protection International’s
Reef Fish Guide (ReefProtect.org/fish_
guide.htm) further assesses popular
marine species based on four criteria:
survivability in home aquaria; abun-
dance in the wild; availability and
potential for captive breeding; and
the collection methods used. Local
hobbyist groups can be other good
sources of information and,
occasionally, homebred fish stock.
Finally, make sure any kids in the
house don’t harbor a Finding Nemo
fantasy. Releasing non-native species
into the wild can cause ecological
problems, particularly if those species
become established populations. Do
not dump an unwanted fish in a pond
or flush it down a toilet. Instead, find a
new home for a fish that has worn out
its welcome, perhaps with a local pet
store.
The best of all worlds is to avoid
getting into such a situation in the
first place: Make sure to buy only fish
species that won’t grow too big for the
designated aquarium and won’t start
turf wars with their tank-mates. As with
any other purchase, the greenest
choice will be the one we
don’t have to replace.
Nina Shen Rastogi
writes a weekly envi-
ronmental column at
Slate.com.
Pr i n t e d o n re c y c l e d Pa P e r t o Pr o t e c t t h e en v i r o n m e n t
October 2009 15
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