Coral Import Questions

[IconicAquariums]

Can someone please explain to me the points & benefits of people smuggling corals into certain countries to export them to the USA?

It is disturbing the lengths some are going to get certain high profit species.

Is there anything that should be done by us as a community/industry? Can someone alse describe the procedures CITES uses to verify which species are actually being exported/imported? Does Customs/US F&W go through the same guidelines once the shipments are stateside?

Joe

 

[Anonymous]

I can answer #1.....Money

You mean like collecting a species like, let's say elegance in Indo, and shipping them to another country, like let's say Fiji, for re-export?

 

[IconicAquariums]

Well, i get the money, just not the risk factor :roll:

i.e. HK>Indo>USA

 

[Anonymous]

Oh, Roses and LPS?

Yah, to the non smuggling types(like us), the risk seems far to great. I dunno how they can live with the stress, not to mention the guilt.

 

[IconicAquariums]

Well, that's just one example.

I recently heard of suitcases of corals coming from HK & Aus & Sg & Jap going through newer stations in Indo & it's awful.

It's bad enough when one hobbyist puts a couple of Acans from Japan in their suitcase, let alone an export station filling suitcases on a regular basis.

Is there anything that can be done to stop this? I know it's really not my jurisdiction, but it really bothers me.

joe

 

[Anonymous]

I'll tell you one thing, USF&WS treats even dime droppers as criminals IME. Try to help and they look at you cross eyed

 

[Vili_Shark]

There's nothing collected in HK.
It's all smuggled from China to HK.
China must start preserve it's reefs for a start and if not ban the collection so at least start giving quota for cites.

 

[IconicAquariums]

Vili, it's not about China. It's more of the principal of the import stations. Do you have illegal corals coming into your country?

Dendrophyllia is probably perfectly legal in China. Duncanopsammia is legal in Australia, and areas(Europe) it exports corals to.

I understand it is supply & demand, and these corals are not on CITES from Indonesia.

Maybe USF&W should have someone that can determine what Tubastrea micranthra is in contrast to Duncanopsammia axifuga.

Obviously someone in Indonesia & LA knows what's going on and how to exploit these faults, although apparently stores should get them "before they catch on." Evidently getting caught is not an issue, as it will probably just result with a slap on the wrist...

 

[Vili_Shark]

My point is that if China was controlling it's coral export and was giving quota for Cites it could have export by itself and then all this illegal smuggling wont happen.

They must fo something about their reef conservation cause soon they going to be left with a desert as they exploit their reefs too fast.

Dendrophyllia is not legal either, it is not illegal as well as there is no law or at least nobody cares or protecting it, you can go and take it just like if it was a garden flower, taking it out of China is a different story though.

USF&WL is probably the most knowledgable in all western countries when it comes to species names.

I dont know why you brought this subject up , when it comes to America, all these corals you mentioned are in relatively small qttys , at least from China they are.
There are so many corals smuggled in the world without cites to a non cites need markets!
That's the real threat .

 

[Anonymous]

USF&WL is probably the most knowledgable in all western countries when it comes to species names.
.

8O Have you ever dealt with them on a regular basis? That's just scary that you say they're the best, just how bad is the worst?

There may be a few knowledgable agents around, but on a whole, they're not that up on coral/fish scientific names. Currently in the SF area, they're attempting to learn, but have a long way to go. With so little amount of MO coming thru, compaired to other sutff, knowing coral scientific names is a very low priority for most. Heck, I've heard of not only our local office sending corals to be ID'd by public aquariums, I've heard about it happenning at all the other ports of entry in the states.

 

[Anonymous]

USF&WL is probably the most knowledgable in all western countries when it comes to species names.
.

8O Have you ever dealt with them on a regular basis? That's just scary that you say they're the best, just how bad is the worst?

There may be a few knowledgable agents around, but on a whole, they're not that up on coral/fish scientific names. Currently in the SF area, they're attempting to learn, but have a long way to go. With so little amount of MO coming thru, compaired to other sutff, knowing coral scientific names is a very low priority for most. Heck, I've heard of not only our local office sending corals to be ID'd by public aquariums, I've heard about it happenning at all the other ports of entry in the states.

heh f&w for the most part couldn't i.d. a middle finger at a hand convention :lol:

 

[Anonymous]

Duncanopsammia is legal in Australia, and areas(Europe) it exports corals to.

I just got word that there are Duncans, and other corals, coming in WITH CITES from Australia. Like I said in another post, I know it's cold, but I had no idea it was cold enough for hell to freeze over