| More and more frequently, fish of all shapes and sizes are being imported into the UK aquatics trade. A large percentage of these fish appear in general pet stores and are sold to unwary customers who do not expect their pet fish to grow to such enormous sizes and are left with a 'BIG' problem as a result of inadequate space or equipment. |
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| Zoos and aquaria are being inundated with public donations of all sorts of fish species. Although members of the pubic may see this as the perfect solution for their problem, it creates problems for the aquaria themselves. It is often very difficult for them to mix donated stock with their own stock and they often lack the space to provide a purpose built home for the donated fish. |
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| Therefore the zoos and aquariums in the UK decided to launch the Big Fish campaign to stop the problem. The campaign, launched in November 2005 is ongoing and coordinated by Blue Planet Aquarium aims to raise public awareness about the need to make sensible, informed decisions when choosing pet fish. |
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| The Big Fish campaign aims to : |
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Encourage the public to research properly the fish species that they wish to own as pets |
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Overturn the notion that fish will never outgrow the size of their tanks |
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Prevent the sale of these species in pet stores to protect their welfare |
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Alleviate the problem of public aquaria being pressurised into accepting these big fish |
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| Handy hints for fish keepers: |
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Think about what kind of things will the fish need - food, tank size and system |
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Think about how much time you will have to look after the fish |
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Think about your budget as buying a fish is a long term commitment |
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Think about quarantine facilities for sick fish |
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Remember that your tank system will need to mature before you add the fish |
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Try to buy fish that have been bred in captivity |
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Always quarantine your fish before adding them to the tank |
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| Activities: |
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18 UK aquariums participated |
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DVD and poster presentations where set up as well as scheduled keeper talks and leaflet distribution |
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Publications in various pet and trade magazines (thanks to Tim Hayes): Practical Fish Keeping (Oct 2006), Aquatic Trader (Sept 2006), Tropical Fish (Oct 2006), Aquarium Fish (~Jan 2007) and Aquatic Trade News (~2007) |
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Steve Leonard agreed to be a patron of the campaign and ……….. |
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Pet and aquarium shops were approached to join in the campaign |
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| Impact of the campaign |
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| A survey was completed by 16 aquariums for three months at the end of 2006 as a way to measure the impact of the campaign. |
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Species |
Total Species No. |
| 1 |
Piranha |
18+ |
| 2 |
Plecstomas sp. |
15 |
| 3 |
Pangassius sp. |
11 |
| 4 |
Tiger Oscar |
7 |
| 5 |
Cat fish (sp. Unknown) |
5 |
| 6 |
Pacu |
4 |
| 7 |
Red Tailed Catfish |
3 |
| 8 |
Cichlids (sp. Unknown) |
3 |
| 9 |
Snakehead |
2 |
| 10 |
Sturgeon |
2 |
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| Of the 83 freshwater fish that were offered, aquariums were only able to place 23% of these. The species in the top ten list are similar to those that Dr Burgess found in 2003. |
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| Extrapolating from this data, 332 fish outgrow their tanks each year. Fish needing new tanks were up to 48” long (4 ft or 120 cm). The average size of the tank these fish originated from is 3ft x 1ft x 1 ft, big enough for ……. |
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| Top ten marine fish needing larger tanks: |
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Species |
Total Species No. |
| 1 |
Port Jackson sharks |
2 |
| 2 |
Panther Grouper Moray |
2 |
| 3 |
Remora |
1 |
| 4 |
Snowflake |
1 |
| 5 |
Sweetlips sp. |
1 |
| 6 |
Porcupine puffer |
1 |
| 7 |
Red Lionfish |
1 |
| 8 |
Queen Coris |
1 |
| 9 |
Mono |
1 |
| 10 |
Spine checked Anemone fish |
1 |
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| Possibly fairing slightly better than the freshwater fish, 11 marine fish were offered and 45% of these were able to be taken. Fish tended to be slightly smaller than the fresh water with the largest being 20” (1ft 8”, ~40cm) from and average tank size of 4ft x 2ft x 2ft. |
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| Again similar species are in the top ten as were found in previous research. |
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| More data is needed to determine whether the data collated is a true representation of the problem and what the issues actually are. |
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| Future |
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| The Big Fish campaign is ongoing and it is hoped that pet and aquarium shops such as Maidenhead Aquatics will take the campaign on board. |
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| To help wildlife TV presenter and vet Steve Leonard and UK aquariums halt the trade in Big Fish species, please contact campaign coordinator, George Ablett georgea@blueplanetaquarium.co.uk , Ranger and Exhibit Manager, Blue Planet Aquarium 0151 357 8800 |
