Breeding and Rearing of Marine Ornamentals

Abstract

The marine aquarium trade is a billion dollar business that may sustain continued growth in the coming years. In the past decade, there has been a worldwide increase in the popularity of reef tanks, which has led to an increased demand for marine ornamental organisms (Wood 2001; Green 2003). In contrast to the freshwater ornamental species, most marine organisms being marketed in the aquarium trade are collected from the wild, particularly from coral reef areas. The prevalence of destructive low-cost harvesting techniques, such as the use of cyanide and explosives, has caused dramatic and drastic impacts on the health and biodiversity of the reef ecosystems. Developing hatchery technology for marine ornamental species is therefore urgently needed to guarantee the sustainable supply for the industry while minimising the negative impacts on the natural environment (Lin et al. 2002). In the recent years, researchers, traders, collectors and hobbyists have begun a worldwide effort to minimise the growing pressure on the natural populations of marine ornamental species and to promote the sustainable use of these high-valued resources (Corbin 2001).