Ethical Fish Reproduction

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Ethical Fish Reproduction

• Dr. Craig Kasper
• Additional materials courtesy of Dr. Jeff Hill
  (TAL)

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Lecture Summary

• Animal treatment
• Non-natives
• Government Organizations

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Do fish have feelings?

• Some folks say yes, while others no.
• NGOs want you to believe it.
• Scientific research is not clear!

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Protect Yourself and Your Organization

• Have a fish handling protocol in place and review
  it annually.
• Also known as guidelines for Good Laboratory
  Practices (GLP guidelines).
• Dont let random folks into your facility or take
  place in daily operations.

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Protect Yourself and Your Organization

• Have a fish handling protocol in place and review
  it annually.
• If you are hard-core, then you can get GLP
  certification!
• Also known as guidelines for Good Laboratory
  Practices. (Difficult)
• Dont let random folks into your facility or take
  place in daily operations.

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Non-native Species

• What are they?
• What good are they?
• What bad are they?
• What can I do?

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What does it mean?
Non-native refers to organisms which are foreign
or not native, which have been introduced to an
area. Also known as Alien, Exotic,
Nonindigenous
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Exotic different from the native
Oranges Tomatoes Dogs Cotton Dandelions
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Benefits of non-natives
(Meet a need a native has not been found to fill)

• Food
• Beauty
• Pets
• Sportfishing
• Control of pests
• Other uses

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Non-natives in Florida agriculture

• Oranges and other citrus fruit
• Tomatoes
• Sugar cane
• Cattle and dairy cows
• Green peppers
• Chickens
• Tropical fish

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History

• Native Americans traded among themselves bringing
  some organisms to Florida (corn, beans and squash
  from Central America)
• When European settlers left for the New World,
  they brought along the plants and animals of
  their homeland. They also brought disease.

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What would your life be like without non-natives?
No milk on your breakfast cereal, but thats OK,
you probably couldnt get cereal anyhow. You
cant have orange juice, either.
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Imagine your life without

• Pizza
• Ice cream
• Peanut butter
• Sugar or honey to sweeten your food
• Cotton clothing
• Leather football, baseball or soccer balls
• Cats or dogs (Okay, cats can go.)

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Can non-natives be bad?
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Yes

• Invasive organisms are species that are
• non-native and cause, or are likely to cause,
  economic or environmental harm or harm human
  health.

These can be plants, animals and other organisms
such as microbes.
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Whats so bad about invasives?

• Can alter habitat
• Can reduce native diversity
• Can exclude or cause disease in natives or
  beneficial non-natives
• Can hybridize with natives
• Can be harmful to humans

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Floridas Non-native Species
Non-natives
Non-native invasives

• West Nile Virus
• Cows
• Brazilian Pepper
• Commercial Citrus
• Citrus Canker
• Melaleuca
• Vegetables
• Hydrilla
• Nursery plants
• Water-hyacinth

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US Non-native Fish Species Too many to list!!!
http//nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/SpeciesList.asp?Gro
upFishes
http//floridafisheries.com/Fishes/non-native.html
Unfortunately, most of these can and do survive
quite well in FL.
Others sea lamprey alewife zebra and quagga
mussels spiny and fishook water fleas round
goby See handouts!!
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How do they do it?

• What makes an invasive species successful?

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• 1. Invasives are productive
• grow quickly, produce lots of offspring (eggs,
  seeds, spawn multiple times
• 2. Invasives are readily dispersed by
• Wind, water, wildlife, humans
• 3. Invasives lack natural controls
• Predators, insects, disease
• 4. Invasives are habitat generalists
• can tolerate range of temperatures
• can live in variety of habitats
• have a broad diet
• 5. Invasives outcompete natives
• shade native plants
• consume nutrients or food of natives

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How did invasives get here?
Humans are the primary means of introduction

• hitchhikers (boating, ballast, cargo)
• moving animals
• aquariums
• pets

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Control and Management

• Physical Control
• Chemical Control
• Biological Control
• Ecological Control
• Commercialization

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What Can I Do to Help?

• Dont bring home unfamiliar plants or animals
• Never free pets into the wild
• Birds, fish, snails, iguanas, or monkeys
• Dont dump aquariums into waterways
• Give unwanted pets away
• On the water
• Clean off your boat and aquatic equipment
• Throw back any fish you wont eat when fishing
• Use native plants or well researched non-natives
  whenever possible

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Who Cares?

• Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
  (APHIS)
• Animal Lovers Against Animal Cruelty (ALAAC)
• People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
  (PETA)
• Greenpeace

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The Law

• Unlawful release of exotic species in Florida is
  punishable by a 1,000 fine and up to one year in
  jail.
• Dont even tell em about physical abuse during
  your typical daily operations.

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• Know the pathways of introduction and do your
  part to stop accidental release into wild
• Be aware of laws related to non-native species
• Join a community group that restores habitat and
  removes invasives
• Look at up-to-date information on new invasives
  and exotics
• Teach others about the benefits and risks of
  non-native species