Leopard shark fishery

[Kalkbreath]

Are "surge zone worms" the ones hanging from surf boards just outside the beakers?
Odd thing for a fish to eat.
Are there any collection areas which dont have these worms for the tangs to eat?
They dont surf in Vanuatu do they? :wink:

 

[bookfish]

I've always had a tough time with people buying/selling sharks for home aquariums.

Absolutely.

Steve so you are promoting the capture of shark for the aquarium trade now, eh!
What's happening bud?

All sharks of any size and their eggs should be absolutely banned in the aquarium trade and the trade itself must take leadership on this issue.Wayne

Steve, I think you failed to answer the actual question which was asked. Please try again. Thx-Jim

 

[clarionreef]

Jim,
He writes;
"Steve so you are promoting the capture of shark for the aquarium trade now, eh!"
He used the term promoting .

I also am in favor of our right to see Brokeback Mountain.
Although I don't promote Alpine trysts among men generally.... I support their consensual right to express themselves when the fish are not biting.
Steve

 

[clarionreef]

I have a freshwater sturgeon in my backyard pond.
They grow quite large....and thats a fact I am very well aware of.
All statements are true.
Can I not keep it for a decade? Treasure it and care for it?
Steve
ps.
Suggesting a controlled, legal, limit entry is not exactly promoting shark keeping for the Walmart fish dept. crowd. You do see a difference, right?
There is a niche for sharks in the trade although not one that should be catered to without the research and good reading required of any fish keeping....you know, like ...er...coral keeping.

Mitch said it best and anticipated a Canadian reaction. :lol:

"I don't need or want other people deciding what is moral or immoral for me. I think some of the California hippies and BC Canadians have lived such a life of excess when it comes to things like drugs, alcohol, and sexual experimentation that they can no longer trust their own judgement"

 

[dizzy]

They way I read it, Steve is saying that we need to concentrate our efforts on stopping habitat damage and not get sidetracked on emotional issues. Some people do build home systems large enough to house adult leopards. I remember seeing a leopard a guy had kept for over two years in a 55-gallon tank. It had simply not grown an inch was only about 11 inches. I had gone to his office and actually seen it swimming in the tank. I was amazed it would stunt like that. Keeping a freshwater oscar in a ten gallon tank can be just as cruel, if either is truly cruel. I've seen huge fish people bring in after being kept in tanks you wouldn't believe it was possible for them to reach that size in. I once had a guy bring me in a 9" fully adult imperator he had grown from a 3" juvenile in a 55-gallon tank. I had someone bring in a 12" Queen angel that tripled in size in a 55-gallon and looked great. I have a 3" purple tank that I've kept for over 8-years in a 160-gallon tank and it has not grown any at all. It's color is perfect and no lateral line, but it still has junvenile coloring. I've had fish that wouldn't grow in big tanks and fish that grew too fast in little tanks. I have some koi from a spawn a couple of summers ago and some are over 10" and some are less than 3", despite being kept under identical conditions. Go figure.

If those who truly want to protect the environment would concentrate their efforts on sustainabilty issues we could probably get most everyone on board. When the debate turns instead to one group wanting to legislate laws designed control the behavior of others for no real logical reason other then they don't like it, we become hopelessly divided and nothing gets accomplished. We need to fix the stuff that needs fixing the most first. If people ever adopt that simple philosophy we could begin to work together and might actually make a difference.
Mitch

 

[bookfish]

Fair enough. I think I still feel that a fish that gets to 7 feet should be illegal in the aquarium trade but I strongly support individuals who are showing the appropriate care for their animals and housing them appropriately, as Steve is doing with his sturgeon. I just feel that the aquarium industry has a habit of selling animals to whoever has the $ to buy them regardless of their ability to care for them. I also agree that the real work of reform is less legislative and more action-oriented. To that end, i gave up everything in my life to go to the tropics and try to make a difference. I think this has been a great discussion.
Thx-Jim