Where do ornamental fish come from?

FOR those of us who have home aquariums, aquatic ornamentals, known as “ornamental fish”, are highly appealing due to their brilliant colours, shapes and patterns, as well as interesting behaviour.

Although it is far more common for households to keep freshwater fish, such as goldfish, guppies and catfish, largely due to their accessibility and easy maintenance, reef, or saltwater aquariums, have experienced rapid growth over the past decade. This has been fuelled by increasing popularity due to the exquisite diversity of the marine life they house, as well as advances in husbandry techniques.

While the vast majority of freshwater ornamentals are captive bred (more than 95 per cent) and therefore do not impact wild populations, marine ornamentals are a different story. More than 90 per cent of marine ornamentals are collected from the wild. For example, more than 30 million reef fish are captured each year from coral reefs to supply the aquarium trade.

After capture, these fish experience a high mortality rate.

Taking wild fish and invertebrates from coral reefs is not a sustainable practice as it depletes natural stocks from already declining reef habitats.

Wild-caught marine ornamentals are sensitive and require suitable environmental conditions to ensure they thrive in home aquariums.

With the increasing popularity of marine aquarium keeping, the aquaculture of marine ornamentals has attracted research attention.

As a result, some captive bred marine ornamentals, such as clownfish, are becoming increasing available in aquarium shops. Whenever possible, it is advisable to buy cultivated ornamentals to help protect our precious coral reefs.

Unfortunately, to date, very few marine ornamentals can be produced by breeding, and James Cook University is undertaking research and development to cultivate more marine ornamentals to reduce pressure on the world’s coral reefs.

JCU’S pioneering research has so far led to the successful captive breeding of more than 40 species of marine fish and crustaceans, many of which are a world first.

Despite many challenges that come with the research, this is a valuable opportunity to conserve reefs for generations.