Aquacultured Corals and Marine Fishes for Aquariums

Much like the successes made toward captive breeding in the freshwater hobby years back, progress continues apace in the field of cultured corals and fishes. This is good news on several fronts: captive-produced animals relieve pressure on wild populations and their environment, they lack infectious and parasitic disease, they're much more likely to adapt to captive conditions, and are notably less aggressive than ones collected in the wild. Let's expand on the specific issues that define the many benefits of "home-grown" saltwater species.

Benefits of Aquacultured Specimens
Over Wild-Collected

• Captive bred specimens acclimate better to home aquariums
  Wild specimens of marine life have a great deal more to contend with than their aquacultured kin. The effects of bad weather, strong currents, predators, availability of food… are more extreme in nature than in our aquariums. Many wild-collected fishes have a hard time adjusting to living in a limited volume, clear-sided container… some unfortunate ones actually damage themselves by repeatedly striking the sides. Marine fishes that have been bred and reared in captivity have none of these problems. They are raised within the familiar limits of their surroundings, and acclimate easily to home aquariums.
  
  
• Reduced Aggression
  A very real source of mortality in marine specimens is overt antagonistic behavior. Saltwater environments are socially very challenging. For the most part, it is characterized by near constant "fight or flight" behavior on the part of fishes and stinging and poisoning events amongst sedentary stinging-celled animals like corals. Wild corals are accustomed to vigorous competition for space and light and have evolved strong stinging and potent poisoning strategies for staking out their living area. Captive-produced specimens have proven much more facile and tolerant toward neighboring sedentary invertebrates. Aquarium settings, by virtue of their calmer, less competitive nature, result in animals "getting along" better than ones in the wild, with much lower rates of death due to aggression.
  
  
• Tank-Raised Fish are easier to feed
  An important factor in the selection and purchase of new fish is whether it is eating or not, particularly the types of foods you intend to offer. Very often, particularly with very young/small and larger/older specimens of marine fishes, food acceptance is a critical issue. Many species just outright refuse all types of foods. This is a striking difference between captive-produced and wild-collected specimens. As a result of being fed prepared foods and cultures throughout their lives, aquacultured marine specimens are aware of novel types and formats, even going to the surface to feed (which does NOT occur in the wild).
  
  
• Lower risk of introducing pathogens to your reef aquarium
  Obviously, aquacultured specimens are not exposed to the many and varied parasites and infectious disease agents as their counter parts are in the wild. Many of the marine specimens that are lost are "anomalous," that is of unknown or uncertain origins… often traceable to internal disease challenges. Populations that have "closed the loop," offspring of captive-produced parentage, are "specific pathogen free." These specimens should still be carefully acclimated and possibly quarantined just the same, but more to give them a chance to "rest up" before being placed in a main/display tank rather than waiting to see if signs of biological disease develop.
  
  
• Easier to culture for beginners
  If you're interested in culturing a species, it is far easier to utilize captive-produced specimens for its generation. For all the above stated reasons, this broodstock is more stable, healthy and likely to survive the rigors of breeding, rearing in the case of fishes or cutting/fragmenting with corals.

When you can, buy aquacultured specimens. This makes sense for you, your aquarium, and the environment. Captive fishes and corals are hardier, disease-free, less antagonistic, more accepting of prepared foods, and generally far more likely to thrive in your care.

As time goes by, we will overcome hurdles, particularly the feeding protocols of juvenile forms, and be able to successfully culture all species. We will then find more and more aquacultured species becoming available as a viable alternative to wild-caught specimens. Who knows - you may well be responsible for contributing to this trend through your own efforts!