1)so what do you think about our hobby and its impact on the natural reefs?
It certainly has an effect on reef populations, especially if done incorrectly. If we were to practice responsible collecting, however, it is actually possible to have a positive effect on reef populations, species richness and biodiversity (read up on ecological disturbance theory if you're curious). Current practices, unfortunately, decimate reefs.
If we were to look at our hobby through another lens, it may have both positive and negative social impacts. Reefs are very much "out of sight, out of mind" for most people. If more people are exposed to the hobby (whether by involvement or simply being shown) and they get that hands-on experience, it becomes much more real for them and they are more aware, even if only a bit more. Movies like "Finding Nemo" have made reef ecosystems more of an social topic (more so for younger generations). I know many people who were interested to learn more about reefs after that movie... but I also know equally as many who are the "OMG Look at that cute little Nemo-fish!" (For those people I just wanna...
), which I believe actually gives the hobby a bad social image (case in point: designer clownfish).
2)do you buy wildcaught if yes does it bother you?
I try not to, unless something really epic comes up. 95% of my corals are from CanReef member frags. It does bother me when buying wild-caught.
3)what do you think we as hobbysts can do to protect or help our reefs??
Demand better collecting practices, encourage/demand mariculture and spread awareness to the uninitiated.
4)do you see the hobby coming to an end??
Certainly not but there are changes a comin'.
5)do you support captive breeding??
I have mixed feelings on this. I am 100% for captive breeding and believe it should be the way. HOWEVER, I'm not sure how I feel about "designer fish" like the ORA an Picasso clowns (though this isn't much different that guppy or dog breeding). I am DEFINITELY against those frigging Glo-fish that have been genetically modified to fluoresce.
6)what do you think the impact would be to the economy if collecting/harvesting were to stop??
Minimal. Marine trade is small beans compared to, well, pretty much every other industry. The aquarium industry would die, or take a major set-back.
7)do you think blackmarket or underground coral smuggling exist in our country??
Sure as heck it does. If our border was more open to the US so that we could get a hold of their livestock, it wouldn't be so bad. We lack the selection, diversity and quality of livestock (in very general terms) that the US does (though luckily we don't share the same stupidly inflated prices).
8)do you think collecting and harvesting practices could be better?
Certainly (as mentioned above). If we were to follow wild collection principles that we practice on land we could actually encourage species richness and diversity. Right now we collect in a manner similar to clear-cut logging. Clear-cutting is slowly giving way to more friendly logging practices where we selectively remove from very defined regions and alleviate species pressure.
9)would you not buy something because it came from the wild??
Possibly, would be situation dependent.
10)do you think the impact has bettered in the last ten yrs or gotten worse??
I previously thought it had gotten worse until I read a few recent studies (2008-2010) that showed collection-related damage has actually gone down but collection is becoming more widespread.. so I'm gonna give this a "no change" overall.
11)do you believe there should be animal laws regarding fish and tank sizes??
Like in terms of the "Tang Police"? No, there is no actual evidence as to what-species-needs-to-be-in-what-size-tank, it is all purely anecdotal (like people saying that
betta splendis can be kept in minimal water, as small as a cup, because they are used to this in nature... which is BS). So other than assigning arbitrary numbers, this rule is mostly useless. For many species, like tangs, the instant you put them into a tank. it is not enough water volume. I have seen many 180+ gallon tanks so packed full of live rock and coral that that tang in there would have more swimming volume in my 40 gallon. So really what good is it saying that those tangs can only go into 180+ gallon tanks?
Now, I'm not saying we should be shoehorning big species into small tanks. The opposite. I think people just need to be more aware of the species needs and behaviour and make the right decision as to whether or not they are capable of providing appropriate care. Most people are not honest and knowledgeable enough to make the right choice, unfortunately
12)do you feel guilty for caging these little creatures?
Sometimes yes. For smaller species less so.
13)whats your thoughts on species that dont do well and lfs bringing them in regularly
I am a bit different than most people and I go to huge lengths to learn how to keep the difficult and not-understood species (currently working on a rare starfish). Now, I am not a publishing aquarist; my experiences will only be recorded anecdotal... but this is where this hobby has power over pure science studies: we have strength in numbers and hobby aquarists, like those here on CanReef, communicate far more regularly than scientists do (I'm a scientist, so I can say this with certainty).
Knowledge is incremental. Though for a while we may be unsuccessful at a certain species, enough us will start to have small successes that begin to build into a bigger and bigger knowledge-base and we will eventually be successful at a species. I can name TONS of species that we once said were impossible and people now keep them successfully (NPS is the current knowledge revolution happening). Now, if we could only pull our collective sh*t together, be supportive and discuss our past (though failed) experiences we could advance our knowledge of a species REALLY fast. Unfortunately this is not the case, especially around here, where if someone says "I want to try this hard species" or "I brought this home" they are lambasted, flamed, tarred-and-feathered and given another earful for good measure rather than someone saying "Well, you've bitten off more than you could chew on this one and you should be more responsible next time but here are my experiences or this is what I've heard".
Eventually, by better understanding the animals we keep and sharing those experiences, we could drastically reduce the number of fatalities.
Now, that being said, there are some species that simply cannot exist in small aquaria in the absence of their symbionts or preferred food source (or suitable substitute). These species should certainly be left alone. Critical reef species, like cleaner species, should be left on the reef and be aquacultured instead (if possible... gotta figure out HOW first).
14)would you buy something smuggled or not supposed to be in our country??
I unfortunately have to say yes, depending on what it was. Endangered? Definitely not. Super cool SPS frag from someones tank? Ya, probably.
15)would you be willing to give up this hobby if you knew it would save the reefs and oceans of the world?
No, because this hobby is teaching me how I can save the reefs and oceans. In about 3 years when I finish my PhD I am going to change careers and focus on reef restoration as a career... a task which I will be doing through aquaculture.