Asian reds not on the red list?

[SimonL]

Do some research, and you'll find out that it's prohibit to capture or sell wild Asian arowana everywhere in the world

It's prohibited? Really? That must mean it doesn't exist, because people never do things that are illegal...

Sigh...Ewurm is quite correct, there is a market for wild caught and poached animals. It is however, not advertised for everyone to see. These fish aren't chipped and can't be openly sold as the distribution of arowanas is regulated by the Indonesian agriculture agencies if I'm not mistaken...

Yes, they may not have the brightest color like farm raised stock, but imagine if you could wander down to your local river and scoop a few 24" Reds...and then sell 'em for a couple grand...

 

[ewurm]

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2629175&postcount=117

The fishing industry is a valuable one. A large (50-60cm), reddish-golden colored Asian Arowana can sell for as much as several hundred US dollars in the lake area, and be worth more than US$1,000 (or even US$ 5,000) by the time it is sold in Jakarta. Marbled Goby, valued locally at about US$10 per kilogram, are shipped live, in oxygenated plastic bags, to markets in Singapore and Japan. Clown Loach are shipped the world over, as they are not bred successfully in captivity. The total value of the market is currently valued at about US$ 2.2 million (Aglionby, 1997), but it should be noted that the Asian Arowana is now very scarce and barely contributes to the local economy.

 

[sostoudt]

You may have missed my point. I wasn't talking about the fish itself, I was talking about the fact that a wild arapaima has blood red flanks. Why is it not possible for a wild arowana to potentially display similar colour?

because its very unlikely they are that red. it makes you more visible to predators and prey. most animals blend into there surroundings except at mating season when it wants attention.

 

[sostoudt]

but imagine if you could wander down to your local river and scoop a few 24" Reds...and then sell 'em for a couple grand...

i dont think the less colorful go for that much , besides most locals only get a tiny fraction of the value of a fish they catch.



also perhaps i should remind you there endangered so its not like they jumping into the boat

 

[SimonL]

because its very unlikely they are that red. it makes you more visible to predators and prey. most animals blend into there surroundings except at mating season when it wants attention.

Someone should tell Red Devils that...or Red Terrors, all those orange African cichlids, salmon, all the other orange/red fish out there...There is a reason why arowanas get bright colours only at adult size, because not much eats them...

also perhaps i should remind you there endangered so its not like they jumping into the boat

Hence why they're valuable...there is a thriving illegal market in endangered species...If the wild ones weren't colourful enough to be collected...why did the rampant over-collection result in the species becoming endangered?

 

[ewurm]

i dont think the less colorful go for that much , besides most locals only get a tiny fraction of the value of a fish they catch.



also perhaps i should remind you there endangered so its not like they jumping into the boat

See post 72.

 

[ewurm]

i believe the thread does say ASIAN REDS NOT ON THE RED LIST good catch i missed it

I noted the error in the post. That's like finding gold in a pile of yellow shiny rocks with a sign planted in the middle that says "GOLD"

 

[sostoudt]

Someone should tell Red Devils that...or Red Terrors, all those orange African cichlids, salmon, all the other orange/red fish out there...There is a reason why arowanas get bright colours only at adult size, because not much eats them...



Hence why they're valuable...there is a thriving illegal market in endangered species...If the wild ones weren't colourful enough to be collected...why did the rampant over-collection result in the species becoming endangered?

i tend to think cichlids are a special case, and many cichlids are algae eaters.

why arent bears brightly colored if its all about being at the top of the food chain?

ive read habitat destruction cause most of the damage.

Declining habitat is a major threat. For example, Asian arowanas are now uncommon in the Malay Peninsula, where they were once widely distributed, due to environmental destruction.[21] Inclusion in the IUCN Red List was originally based not on biological reasons but on practical ones: though widely distributed throughout southeast Asia, they have been harvested heavily by aquarium collectors. However, habitat loss is likely a greater threat than aquarium collecting.

 

[sostoudt]

See post 72.

i did and i read this

but it should be noted that the Asian Arowana is now very scarce and barely contributes to the local economy.

 

[SimonL]

i tend to think cichlids are a special case, and many cichlids are algae eaters.

why arent bears brightly colored if its all about being at the top of the food chain?

Red devils are most definitely not algae eaters...and what does that have to do with your argument that colour would attract predators?

Bears? Seriously? We're talking about fish, there are no "colorful" mammals period...

If wild arowanas were not colourful, why were they collected almost to extinction, in the first place?