An overview of the Philippine marine aquarium fish industry

Abstract

The Philippine marine aquarium fish industry utilizes 386 species of coral reef fishes belonging to 79 families. Information on the number coral reef fish species utilized, was gathered from export lists and from surveys among marine aquarists and exporters. These were entered in the Philippine Aquaristics Database and were cross checked with the global database of the world's fishes, FishBase for accuracy. The viability of the industry rests on exporters being able to supply a range of species to world markets. The major concern among exporters is the perceived decrease in catches of valuable species and potential loss of variety. Other concerns include post-capture mortality due to handling and transport stresses. A recommendation is presented for a sustainable approach to managing this coral reef fishery. The growth of the market for coral reef aquaria has caused a huge increase in trade of coral reef invertebrates including live corals.