New coral Restrictions!!!

Yea I got an email from the guy at milehighaquatics.com who sells very nice rics about that. Chris, I might have to stop by when I'm in CR next week and check your rics out!

 

I seriously doubt that this will cause the price to sky rocket.  I will just prevent the gathering and sale of wild caught colonies.  The article states:
"Other new rules include specifying that all marine life harvesters must take ricordea (a soft coral) and all corallimorph polyps as a single polyp only and establishing a commercial daily bag limit for all corallimorph polyps of 100 polyps per person or 200 per vessel (if two endorsement-holders are aboard). "
So, they have a limit of 100 rics per day (assuming they are only gathering rics as corallimorphs is a family that is larger then just rics), also their are plenty of tank bread Rics that go for roughly the same as wild caught ones.  So again I wouldn't worry to much.

 

I know alot of people will disagree with me, but I wouldnt mind seeing them drastically reduce the amount of corals, fish, & invertebrates collected off the reef. Especially something as easily propagated as mushrooms.

My view is that if it can be propagated, it shouldnt be collected.

 

Posted By xroads on 06/09/2009 08:36 AM
I know alot of people will disagree with me, but I wouldnt mind seeing them drastically reduce the amount of corals, fish, & invertebrates collected off the reef. Especially something as easily propagated as mushrooms.
My view is that if it can be propagated, it shouldnt be collected.
I would say that I have to agree with Craig on this.
Even if you think of the limit stated in the article of 100 per day, even that amount is not sustainable.
We should be endeavoring to propagated not take the easy way out and collect wild colonies, because we want them big and now.
It really is about time that we start thinking more about the reef's before they are gone.
As a diver I have have seen first hand what happens to the reefs when man is left to do what he wants.
I first started going diving in the Bahama's and Jamaica, when I started diving their it was beautiful, then man stepped in because he realized he could make 50 cents from turning a 50 year old coral colony into jewelry.  Now it is not even worth going diving there, the color is gone, the reefs are no longer covered with beautiful corals and life.  You have to take a 2 hours boat ride to get out past were the locals will go to fetch their trade materials.  It really made me sad to watch this over time.

 

I agree that we should propagate as much as possiable. We should do are part in saving the oceans and wildlife. On the other hand, they make this rule now for Rics, next year they include other things and so on. Soon there we won't have the ablity to collect anything from the ocean. Limits are good, but where does it stop at?

 

Posted By Troy on 06/09/2009 09:01 AM
I agree that we should propagate as much as possiable. We should do are part in saving the oceans and wildlife. On the other hand, they make this rule now for Rics, next year they include other things and so on. Soon there we won't have the ablity to collect anything from the ocean. Limits are good, but where does it stop at?
I guess it will stop when the oceans are dead & there is nothing left to take.        
Man has hunted whales almost to extinction, now sharks, swordfish & many others are not far behind.  Just like the guy who caught the old pregnant shark last week in Florida for fun.  Him or his buddy wont eat it, they just caught it for the fun of catching it & cutting it up.

 

Posted By Troy on 06/09/2009 09:01 AM
I agree that we should propagate as much as possiable. We should do are part in saving the oceans and wildlife. On the other hand, they make this rule now for Rics, next year they include other things and so on. Soon there we won't have the ablity to collect anything from the ocean. Limits are good, but where does it stop at?
As far as corals go, what really can't be propagated at this time, so really there is no need to to even take coral from the ocean any more.  With further reduced limits, this will drive more people into finding what is required for more of the fish breeds to be bread in captivity.  The reason people don't seek it now much is even if they could it is still cheaper to buy wild.  Look at Clown fish, people still buy wild caught Clown fish this fish breeds by itself with not much coxing required.  I would love to be able to buy tank raised everything!

 

Amen, this hobby shouldn't only be focused on collection, but on conservation as well. Frankly the reason many of these are collected (I think) is because it is easy to let nature produce them and then plop down into the sea and harvest the hell out of them. Look at any other  creature that produced anything desirable to Americans throughout history... they are on the endangered list!

 

If anyone was at the Anthony Calfo talk last Fall, he spoke about over collection and propagation in reef tanks and how important it is and how important it will be in the near future when all coral is restricted from collection in the wild. Someday certain coral will be extinct in the wild because we foolishly thought it was ok to collect 100 or 200 a day. For a lot of these corals, we really have no clue what the "safe" amount is to collect. We really shouldn't  be collecting 100 ricordia a day per license holder, that's ridiculous and lazy.......they are easily propagated in tanks with a little patience and time. The talk was excellent, btw and I believe it was recorded. maybe something we could watch at a club meeting sometime?