Audiences around the world breathed a collective sigh of relief when Disney’s clownfish Nemo finally escaped his glass prison and returned to the ocean. Some even shed tears. On the face of it, the 2003 movie had a simple but positive conservation message. Unfortunately that didn’t stop thousands of fans deciding they needed a Nemo of their own. To put in a tank like the one from the film. Soaring demand led to a 75% drop in clownfish populations in some areas after the film screened.  Ten years on and few of Nemo’s saltwater compadres are faring much better.
 
The harsh realities of the ornamental fish trade belie the Zen pleasures associated with home aquariums. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) estimates that in the Philippines alone, as many as 98 out of 100 wild-caught marine ornamental fish die within one year of capture. This is due in part to unsustainable methods of capture and transport - but keeping saltwater fish alive in captivity is inherently difficult. 
 
The ocean is, at least for now, one of the most stable environments on Earth. Large-scale changes occur not in days, but over millennia. Because of this, the colourful tropical species prized by collectors are unprepared for life in the average home aquarium, where water parameters fluctuate daily.  Only the hardiest – clownfish, damselfish, wrasses, gobies and blennies – or those lucky enough to be bought by elite hobbyists, survive beyond their first year in captivity.
 
The ornamental fish industry was born way back in the 1970s, with the development of new technologies such as canister filters, ultraviolet sterilizers, protein skimmers and artificial sea salt. By 1992, the annual trade in marine ornamentals had soared to USD360 million - that’s around 36 million captive fish. Today the trade is valued at over USD1 billion. The US is by far the biggest market, importing half the world’s marine ornamental fish, followed by Japan and Western Europe. 

The Philippines and Indonesia are the world’s top exporters of wild marine fish and invertebrates, supplying about 85% of global demand. Thousands of fishing communities in both countries depend on the trade for their livelihoods. But a voracious market and 40 years of light regulation have led to rampant overharvesting, using unsustainable collecting techniques - most alarmingly cyanide.
 
The use of sodium cyanide is thought to have originated in the Philippines in the 1950s. An efficient nerve-toxin, cyanide is squirted into coral heads or rock crevices to stun hard-to-catch fish. Unfortunately, the mixture burns both corals and the vital organs of fish – resulting in the deaths of up to 75% of all living things exposed to it. Reefs have been decimated - in many fish collection sites, high-value ornamentals like emperor angelfish (Pomacanthus imperator) and clown triggerfish (Balistoides conspicillum) are simply not there any more.
  
Coral Reefs are of course the most important habitats for these fish. But in the Philippines, only 1% of of coral reefs remain in excellent condition, according to Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan, Vice Chair of WWF in the Philippines, citing a 2004 study by the Philippines Marine Science Institute.  Under a system pioneered by Filipino doctors Ed Gomez and Angel Alcala in 1979, coral reefs with below 25% hard coral cover are considered poor, those with 25% to 50% are classed as fair, those with 50% to 75% are considered good and those boasting of more than 75% are considered excellent.
 
For Tan, the ornamental fish trade in its current form adds to the litany of threats facing the ocean. “The world’s marine habitats continue to be assailed by climate change, pollution and unsustainable fishing. Obviously, poor fish and invertebrate harvest practices do little for conservation.”
 
The ornamental fish trade isn’t just going to disappear. What’s more, it’s an important economic driver. But Tan believes it can be more sustainable. “Regulated collection using nets not poison, better stocking and shipping techniques, plus imposing sensible size, catch and species limits can provide collectors both sustainable livelihoods and a strong incentive to protect instead of exploit our reefs,”he explains.
 
In the South Pacific nations of Fiji, Tonga and the Solomon Islands, local communities are learning to sustainably farm hard and soft corals, giant clams and live rock (compacted corals or reef rock encrusted with marine life) for export to western markets – physically watching over plots where the high-value invertebrates are farmed, thereby providing a layer of protection from blast fishers and poachers.
 
WWF established the Better Choices programme in 2012 to promote a shift from threatened seafood and ornamental fish to more sustainable alternatives  in a bid to give dwindling stocks the breathing room they need to recover. One of the key steps is trying to shift market emphasis away from hard to keep fish. For example, mortality rates for mandarin dragonets and cleaner wrasses are estimated at 99% and are currently protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).  Such species should be avoided completely by buyers. Seahorses are also best avoided, unless they are certified tank-raised.
 
A shift towards hardier speices like clownfish, damsels, gobies, wrasses and surgeon fish would help relieve pressure on coral reef ecosystems - survival rates are far better and the costs of upkeep and stock replacement far lower.
 
Right now, 95% of all saltwater aquarium fish and inverterbrates like coral are sourced from the ocean. What’s needed is a drastic shift towards tank raised or farmed species developed specifically for collectors.  The Philippines Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) recently approved a programme where fish farmers can apply for wildlife ranching permits, allowing them to collect a specified number of wild individuals as brood-stock for inland rearing facilities. In exchange, 30% of the reared juveniles must be released back into the wild. Farmed seahorses and clownfish are popular in western countries – they might soon be available to new markets.
 
Finally, suppliers need to raise their prices. Higher prices limit the hobby to those with the financial resources to keep the animals alive. Aside from curbing volume-based trade, higher prices would translate to better incomes for local fishermen, who would earn more from catching less fish. 

For more information on WWF’s Better Choices Programme, please contact WWF-Philippines at [email protected].