A Problem Facing All Australian Fish Keepers

[Baccus]

I have managed to locate the information regarding the proposed banned/ restricted fish species to be kept, breed and traded within Australia. I have posted here the Executive summery as well as the link for members to read the entire report in its entiriety. It is a large indepth report and is very informative. I hope the length of the report does not put people off and that they manage to read all the way through to the end.

http/adl.brs.gov.au/data/warehouse/pe_brs90000004189/OrnamentalFishManagementReport2010_ap14.pdf

Executive summary

The ornamental aquarium fish trade in Australia is estimated to be worth approximately $350

million annually. This ornamental fish industry encompasses commercial fish breeding facilities,

wholesale traders and importers, retail outlets and the hobby sector.

While a valuable industry, the introduction of exotic (non-native) species can present a significant

risk to freshwater ecosystems in Australia and has the potential to alter or degrade natural systems.

Exotic fish species have been implicated in the decline of 42 per cent of Australian native fish and

several frog species.

It is estimated that there are around 2000 species in the ornamental fish trade nationally, most of

which are exotic to Australia. Many fish species in the ornamental fish trade are not on the current

national permitted species lists established under Part 13A of the Environment Protection and

Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 or covered by quarantine regulations. It may be that such

species have been permitted under previous statutory arrangements, but they are no longer on any

national permitted lists and have not been assessed for potential risk to the Australian environment.

To date 30 ornamental fish species have found their way into Australian native aquatic ecosystems

and have been shown to have a significant impact on these systems. Of the 30 ornamental species

established in Australia, 10 (33 per cent) of these species are currently on the permitted imports list,

demonstrating how aquarium species can find there way into freshwater systems. Future escapes of

ornamental fish have the potential to compound current impacts on native faunal and floral

assemblages. Several ornamental species also pose a direct threat to human health. The Ornamental

Fish Management Implementation Group (OFMIG) was formed in 2006 to address this issue.

OFMIG developed a national strategy which included the creation of a national noxious and ‘grey

list’ for problem species. Grey list species are defined as those ornamental fish species detailed in A

Strategic Approach to the Management of Ornamental Fish in Australia (DAFF, 2005) that are

currently not on the noxious list, and require further investigation/consideration and risk assessment.

The Bureau of Rural Sciences (BRS) was tasked by the OFMIG with:

1) developing a communication strategy to reduce the incidence of ornamental fish releases

into the wild and how to dispose of unwanted pet fish

2) reviewing those ornamental fish species currently on the grey list outlined in the national

report A Strategic Approach to the Management of Ornamental Fish in Australia.

A communication strategy has been developed, together with associated communications material.

The communication message was based on the target audience’s (ornamental fish keepers and

hobbyists) likely level of interest and understanding, and a brief explanation of why ornamental fish

should never be released into the wild. The messages developed for industry provide more detail

about the potential impacts ornamental fish can have if released into the wild and some basic

statistics on the number of ornamental fish thought to be present in Australia.

A rapid risk assessment approach was developed to assess the potential impact of ornamental fish on

the environment and other species if released into the wild. The risk assessment matrix is based on

16 criteria covering climate compatibility, establishment history, resilience and hardiness, impacts

on environment and native species, genetic and disease threats, and captivity status. The approach

has been independently assessed by the Australian Centre of Excellence for Risk Analysis

(ACERA). An independent expert technical group also provided input for the first tranche of species

run through the matrix. This report has assessed risk for 447 ornamental fish species from the

national grey list.

The communication strategy directly contributes to addressing the need for increased engagement

with the ornamental fish trade on the key issue of proper disposal of unwanted pests. The rapid risk

assessment provides a scientific, transparent and repeatable process for reviewing the potential risk

of ornamental fish to Australian freshwater ecosystems.

 

[Krill]

Thanks Baccus - as a fellow Aussie found this very interesting

 

[Inchworm]

Thanks for keeping us informed, Baccus.

 

[OldMan47]

I find this very interesting. We had a similar thing come up in the US last year that was eventually defeated. Since hobbyists are eternally resourceful, it would seem more appropriate to begin a campaign to educate people about the dangers of releasing any fish rather than to start banning any fish at all. If I bring a local fish into my tanks from the wild around my home, I should never release that fish back into the wild. The problem is easy to state really. I take in a fish and see some kind of disease or parasite in the fish. I apply a standard aquarium cure and the fish looks healthy enough. Now time goes by and that fish starts to reproduce and makes itself a pest in my tanks by being too prolific. What happens when I release the fish back into the water it came from? From my own perspective, I have released a fish that may be a carrier of some disease or parasite. When it contacts the native wild population, those poor fish have no resistance to my tank sourced disease. A perfectly wild species reintroduced into the wild has become a disease carrier that may destroy the local native species population. No fish that has ever been kept in an aquarium should ever be released into anything but a sterile environment. If a species, such as Ameca splendens, that has ceased to exist in the wild, can be introduced into a suitable sterile habitat, it might possibly become established again in the wild, but examples such as that are indeed rare and should be the subject of scientific analysis, not random releases by hobbyists.

 

[james_fish]

Won't affect me, but a good post nonetheless for the Aussies

Good find Baccus!

James.