Why are Asin Arowana's illegal?

[T1KARMANN]

well all i know is asian aros are leagle hear in the UK and the amount of people who own the high grade reds and xbacks you all drool over is very small

everyone says if they were leagle hear in the US they would buy them at the drop of a hat

well i think you would get alot of people buying greens banjars and RTG at a total cost of $800 for a RTG

but the $2,000 + aro buyers i would like to see how many people would really pay that kind of money for a fish

so even if they were leagle in the US some of the reds and xback you see posted on the net are still dream fish even if they are leagle

 

[señor_pescados_felices]

but the $2,000 + aro buyers i would like to see how many people would really pay that kind of money for a fish

count me in

 

[kootenayrays]

Places like Calgary, Vancouver and Toronto have large asian populations,
so there are PLENTY of people the can, and do, pay that for a fish. There
are a number of rays that go for that price, and people buy them too. There
are people who spend hundreds of thousands on a car, so if someone is into
fish and has the money, heck $2000 is pocket change. As far as many asians
are concerned, the 'dragonfish' is a wealth and prosperity symbol, said to
bear their owners with good fortune. While I'm not really into the culture,
I can see why so many asians are willing to buy them at those prices. They
look at it as an investment for their future. I've seen some people pay that
for a cat, or 20k for a horse that just sits in a field all day. Obviously there
is a market

 

[Miles]

American's are idiots and they will kill them all off as trophy fish in undersized tanks, instead of preserve them?

That is all..

 

[PoopSmart]

Miles your an american, and I bet you wouldn't kill them off in undersized tanks. You are a responsible fishkeeper and we shouldn't have irresponsible people ruining it for everyone else.

Just look at your motto! "Save the stingrays - start captive breeding!" I think there are plenty of people if they had the chance that would captive bred to help save aro's.

This website has helped me (and probably others) buy appropriate sized tanks and filtration for fish. In fact, I do so many water changes, my fingers bleed from cracks and calices on them. I still do weekly water changes because I care so much about how my fish live. As long as there are people committed to giving the honest information on how to take care of fish, then there will be smarter fishkeepers.

 

[Bderick67]

well all i know is asian aros are leagle hear in the UK and the amount of people who own the high grade reds and xbacks you all drool over is very small

everyone says if they were leagle hear in the US they would buy them at the drop of a hat

well i think you would get alot of people buying greens banjars and RTG at a total cost of $800 for a RTG

but the $2,000 + aro buyers i would like to see how many people would really pay that kind of money for a fish

so even if they were leagle in the US some of the reds and xback you see posted on the net are still dream fish even if they are leagle

We have a fair amount of idiots here in the states that would buy them just because of the high cost.

 

[PoopSmart]

But you know what really makes me mad? You can't buy red ear sliders (aquatic turtle) if they are less than 4 inches in shell length unless its for scientific study. I go to Florida every year and tehy sell 1 inch red ear sliders and even bala sharks in plastic 6" x 6" boxes. They sell them in souvineer shops (Alvins Island, Wings, etc.) right next to beach towels and beer bongs.

You can import an Asian arowana if its for scientific study, so maybe I can ask the souvineer shop in Florida to get some in. I don't understand how the suppliers don't even question that these "scientific research only" turtles are being sold to a souvineer shop.

It seems like if we can just say that we are using them for scietific research then that is enough proof.

I mean what kind of scientific research could you be doing on them anyway? I talked to an ex marine biologist who did scientific research on african cichlids. It consisted of killing them, taking their ears out and smearing them across a slide to view under a microscope and count the rings (rings = number of days alive). Sure they named over 200 species of pseudotropheus, but scientific study sounds more detrimental to a fish's health then keeping it as a pet.

 

[---XR---]

nobody will invest 2k into a fish there not going to take care of or try to preserve. americans are known to be the richest nation in the world and there are many people in this country who are devoted to the hobby. if any nation can help in captive breeding of asian arowanas, it is the u.s.

not to mention the illegal aspect of income for smugglers would diminish totally. imo the law's should be reversed but more than likely it won't happen any time in the near future. my 2 cents.

 

[---XR---]

well all i know is asian aros are leagle hear in the UK and the amount of people who own the high grade reds and xbacks you all drool over is very small

everyone says if they were leagle hear in the US they would buy them at the drop of a hat

well i think you would get alot of people buying greens banjars and RTG at a total cost of $800 for a RTG

but the $2,000 + aro buyers i would like to see how many people would really pay that kind of money for a fish

so even if they were leagle in the US some of the reds and xback you see posted on the net are still dream fish even if they are leagle

i'm just as impressed with a good quality RTG as a good quality Xback, therefor i'd be more likely to spend money on a RTG, but there are many many people in this country who will spend BIG money on P13's and P14's- there for asian aro's will bring in more than there fair share of $2000+ investers.

 

[wizzin]

The US is one of the largest ornamental fish importers in the world. We don't know how many people will import them in the US. If what I'm working on works out, obtaining one fish will require some heafty paper work and permit fees, so it's not like you can just drive over to petsmart and pick one up. Part of the permit requirements are that you provide photos of the housing for the fish and a summary of your experience in keeping similar species, so this is sort of an expert only area.

Some data:
In 2005, Canada imported 436 S. Formosus
In 2006, Canada imported 474 S. Formosus
--Now that dragonfish canada is acting as an import agent, and there is a growing number of fishkeepers interested in aros in Canada, 07 and 08 will probably be in the 500's.

The UK...
In 2005, the United Kingdom imported 231 S. Formosus
In 2006, the United Kingdom imported 420 S. Formosus

As stated, there are a lot more people than you think willing to pay the price for these fish. Just because you wouldn't doesn't mean the next guy wont.