NOAA lists 20 coral species as threatened under the endangered species act.

[Masonjames]

Anyone been following all the buzz around this new ruling?

Thoughts?

[Coral Hoarder]

yep just saw it today not sure what to think

[Zoaelite]

For those interested the list includes:

Acropora cervicornis (Staghorn)
Acropora palmata (Elkhorn)
Mycetophyllia ferox
Dendrogyra cylindrus
Orbicella annularis
Orbicella faveolata
Orbicella franksi
Acropora globiceps
Acropora jacquelineae
Acropora lokani
Acropora pharaonis
Acropora retusa
Acropora rudis
Acropora speciosa
Acropora tenella
Anacropora spinosa
Euphyllia paradivisa
Isopora crateriformis
Montipora australiensis
Pavona diffluens
Porites napopora
Seriatopora aculeata

[Masonjames]

Ya I don't know what to make of it either. I've read allot of leaders in the industry are taking some serious notice to it though. And allot of big names in the hobby seem to be quite stirred up by it. The potential implications and possible future ramifications on the hobby as a whole seem to be the main focus.

As the ruling stands today based solely on my understanding of it is this new ruling changes nothing for us hobby wise at this point. Collection and trade will continue as usual. But if I understand correctly the ground work has been laid, and the door has been opened for further bans and stricter regulations. A threatened species is just a stones throw away from endangered. The hobby itself as we know it today is being questioned by the big names in the industry as to what the future will hold in store. Collection of such species in the future could in fact be banned, trading of such species could be illegal. Swapping frags at a frag swap or selling from your home aquarium could be just as illegal as selling crack. And the potential for further legislation, bans and restrictions can easily affect the hobby as a whole, not just a few select species. Further collection sites can continue to be protected, further species listed as threatened and potentially make the endangered list. The hobby is under scrutiny, global warming, over fishing, etc etc, are all going to play a role into what future regulations and legislations will be imposed to protect the environment, coral reefs, individual species. Will we see any adverse ramifications on the hobby in the near or distant future? Who knows. But the flood gates have been opened and the future of the hobby could in fact see changes that would affect all of us.

Let me know if my understanding is off? I'd love to hear others input into this who have a better and broader understanding of the new rulings.

[Borderjumper]

Branching frogspawn is on the list? Wow

[Scythanith]

I have already email PIJAC, my MLA and all the Senators from Saskatchewan asking them what their stance is and what they are doing about it. I will be donating to PIJAC if they respond to my email. Honestly there are good amount of hobbyists that won't flinch to spend $250 on a coral, so you shouldn't flinch to donate the same amount to PIJAC as they are the ones who will be lobbying government on our behalf.

Here is the email I sent.

Hello Mrs. ???,

I am a reef aquarium hobbyist that is very concerned about the current upgraded NOAA list of Corals listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This list is a slippery slope and is poised to severely cripple the marine aquarium trade and all the business that goes along with it.

I understand how our hobby can have a negative effect on the reefs of the world but we are hardly the biggest offender! Drag net & dynamite fishing, tanker bilge dumping, cruise ship/tourist anchoring, agricultural run-off, mining the reefs for cement materials, etc. are all much worse than coral collection for the aquarium trade. In the past all sorts of aquarium collection techniques (fish & coral) were harmful to the environment. Cyanide fish collecting and the destruction of the reefs for live rocks collection have for the most part been eradicated from our hobby due to the concerns of the hobbyists themselves speaking through their actions. It’s a new era of sustainable, educated collection! Mari-cultured corals, tank propagated corals, hobbyist funded ocean research, and some fish breeding programs are all thanks to the passion of hobbyists. I have a tough time accepting that legally collected corals can be made illegal to trade from one hobbyist tank to another.

Environment Canada implements CITES on behalf of the federal government, and the Canadian Wildlife Services administers CITES. Please let me know if your office can or is interested in lobbying against this change in legislature.

[KPG007]

A good article on Reef Builders: Here (http://reefbuilders.com/2014/09/05/20-species-stony-corals-finally-ruled-threatened/)

From the article:
This ruling does not automatically ban the trade of these corals for the time being, those decisions are still in the pipeline and will come out soon enough, but they do state that “we will evaluate whether there are protective regulations necessary and advisable for the conservation of any of the 20 species newly-listed as threatened in this final rule, including application of some or all of the take prohibitions.”



Also, I believe, this is a US ruling and does not apply to Canada. That said, as most of our corals come through the US....

[KPG007]

I understand how our hobby can have a negative effect on the reefs of the world but we are hardly the biggest offender!

From the Reefbuilders article I linked to above:
For its part, NOAA did state that “collection and trade [for the aquarium industry] was ultimately ranked as a low level threat to corals in general.”

[DAVE]

A good article on Reef Builders: Here (http://reefbuilders.com/2014/09/05/20-species-stony-corals-finally-ruled-threatened/)

Also, I believe, this is a US ruling and does not apply to Canada. That said, as most of our corals come through the US....


This is not true. It will apply to Canada, and I would say 80% of the corals in Canada are not from the US.

[MitchM]

I would be interested to hear how they intend to identify the various acropora species that are listed.
Depending on the acro's environment, the coral skeleton may develop differently.
An acropora that develops in a lower light, lower water flow environment can have a different skeleton growth pattern than one that develops in a high light, high water flow environment.

[Scythanith]

I would be interested to hear how they intend to identify the various acropora species that are listed.
Depending on the acro's environment, the coral skeleton may develop differently.
An acropora that develops in a lower light, lower water flow environment can have a different skeleton growth pattern than one that develops in a high light, high water flow environment.

Unfortunately it won't matter. The customs/border agent see's a "stick like" coral and holds up the shipment for a CWS agent to come and look at it. By the time CWS gets there to look at it it's like been a couple days and the coral will be dead. The risk to store owners/importers will become too great.

[Scythanith]

Also, I believe, this is a US ruling and does not apply to Canada. That said, as most of our corals come through the US....

If the species are successfully added to the CITES Appendices then Environment Canada uses the Canadian Wildlife Services to enforce them. Canada signed on with CITES in 1975.

Now my question is since the NOAA and ERA are american, do they now have to apply to CITES to have the corals upgraded from Appendix II to Appendix I?

[MitchM]

Unfortunately it won't matter. The customs/border agent see's a "stick like" coral and holds up the shipment for a CWS agent to come and look at it. By the time CWS gets there to look at it it's like been a couple days and the coral will be dead. The risk to store owners/importers will become too great.

Dead is the only way you can accurately identify an acropora anyways.

....:noidea:

....sounds like the inspection process itself will become a hazard to corals.

[Masonjames]

Did anyone who attended macna attend Julian Sprungs presentation? I understand it was on this exact subject? And why all the recent buzz. Apparently his presentation was also one of the least attended. Lol. Go figure.

Couldn't find anything from the presentation besides others writings and responses to it but I did find Sprungs public commentary he submitted to NOAA following the original proposal.

Interesting read anyways.

http://www.reef2rainforest.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Julian_Sprung_NOAA_letter4.pdf

[Scythanith]

I donated $150.00 to the PIJAC Marine Ornamental Defence Fund. I encourage everyone to donate what they can.

PIJAC Link (http://www.pijac.org/marine)

[stellarfly]

I've been following these latest announcements with a heavy heart to say the least! Personally, I have only recently got into this hobby and now my biggest fears are coming true. The way these events are starting to play out really saddens me. The future of our hobby as a whole will surely be decided soon and with great repercussions you can bet on that!

Here are a few good links:
http://reefbuilders.com/2014/09/12/worldwide-aquatics-industry-risk/

http://www.mrsaltwatertank.com/replay-of-the-live-qa-session-with-mr-saltwater-tank-about-listing-of-corals-as-threatened-under-the-endangered-species-act/

Really informative

[xenon]

Another good link:
http://rettalbot.wordpress.com/2014/09/12/is-the-aquarium-trade-under-attack/

This was taken from one of the comments bellow the article.

It likely will only aggravate the cause as now the collectors will be forced into other lines of work which typically in small 2nd and 3rd world island nations will be production of charcoal, lime and cement, farming, fishing, etc all of which will have no stake in preservation and accelerate the decline due to run off and waste as well as overuse and damage by drag nets, motors, etc.