The NY Times articles states that, “The fierce appetite for live reef fish across Southeast Asia — and increasingly in mainland China — is devastating populations in the Coral Triangle, a protected marine region home to the world’s richest ocean diversity”. In the Live Reef Fish Trade medium to large sized reef fishes are captured alive and shipped long distances, from places like Palau to Hong Kong and other Asian cities, where the fish are maintained alive in aquaria and then selected by diners, butchered and eaten. A live reef fish meal can cost hundreds of dollars, but little of the money involved stays in the countries where the fish are caught.
In a recent article published in the journal Conservation Biology, Dr. Sadovy and co-authors from SCRFA, including the Coral Reef Research Foundation director, Dr. Patrick Colin, reported that spawning aggregations of reef fish worldwide in the tropics have declined 79 % over the past 5 to 20 years, depending on location. These conclusions were based on the first global database on the occurrence, history and management of spawning aggregations developed by SCRFA. It includes data from 29 countries or territories. Some of the information is based on interviews held with more than 300 commercial and subsistence fishers in Asia and the western Pacific between 2002 and 2006. Data collected from Palau is part of this report, particularly from work done in Palau’s Northern Reefs with the assistance from the Palau Conservation Society, Kayangel State and Ngarchelong State.The NY Times articles also reports that groupers are by far the most popular — and therefore endangered — of the reef fish, with 26 % of the world’s 161 species threatened or near threatened, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature 2008 Red List, an annual tally of endangered species around the globe. Many of the species, such as those that live in Palau, gather together in spawning aggregations that are easily targeted by commercial fishers. The Live Reef Fish Trade is largely responsible for the decline of grouper populations worldwide and, with life spans of up to 40 years, it takes a long time for populations to recover.[make this the last paragraph] SCRFA is helping to create the region’s first commercial fishing trade organization to establish standards for sustainable practices. Initial talks between government and industry representatives are being planned. Dr. Sadovy suggested that spawning aggregations be considered protected events rather than simply times when fish are easy to catch. Dr. Sadovy and SCRFA are working together with PCS and CRRF to gain a better understanding of fish aggregations in Palau and to enhance the education efforts to help protect these vulnerable animals. In the latest edition of PCS’s environmental news publication, Ngerel a Biib, the front page story, highlights the work that SCRFA, PCS, CRRF, and Ngarchelong State are conducting in the Northern Reefs to better understand and effectively manage reef fish aggregations.
