What’s on your captive bred fish list?

[Tony Thompson]

The problem of CB marine ornamentals is not just cracking the code. This has been done for a wide range of species,(including the Potters Angel, at least 5 years ago.) The problem is large scale production methods, this takes a lot of investment and would require a relevant demand to make it economically feasible.

If the demand is not there the investment is not going to be made.

A prime example is the work done by rising tide and the Hawaii Institute developing a scaled up method of production for yellow tangs for Biota. This was only made economically feasible due to the ban in Hawaii.

There are a number of marine ornamental breeders including work being done in Europe. There is an extensive choice of species for those interested, although regular availability is driven by demand.

In the UK we may restricted by a possible monopoly of CB species by TMC. It is my understanding that they have sole provider arrangements with many of the CB suppliers, including Biota, ORA and Proaquatix. With the restrictions imposed due to leaving the EU, many of the captive bred species available from Europe are also excluded. Here is a selection of just IN STOCK from one supplier as a small sample of what's available in Europe.

 

[i cant think]

I think you will find its the opposite, The vast majority of Yasha in captivity are wild collected. Although sometimes available as CB , its not particularly common. Gobies are a huge range of species, only a tiny amount are available CB.

Over here we can no longer get Wild Caught Yashas to my knowledge.
as for the whole family of Gobiidae, you are correct in most of them are still wild but the common ones we keep (Yasha, Dracula, Nematodes, Okinawae, Cinctus, and so on) are generally available as CB specimens.

However we have limited CB options restricted to;
Dwarf angels, Common Gobies, (Large) Large angels, and Clownfish.

 

[Tony Thompson]

Over here we can no longer get Wild Caught Yashas to my knowledge.
as for the whole family of Gobiidae, you are correct in most of them are still wild but the common ones we keep (Yasha, Dracula, Nematodes, Okinawa, Cinctus, and so on) are generally available as CB specimens.

However we have limited CB options restricted to;
Dwarf angels, Common Gobies, (Large) Large angels, and Clownfish.

What makes you think that?

You can get wild collected Yasha Gobies in the UK. I know where they are in stock at this moment.

Where have you seen CB S. dracula and S. nematodes for sale as CB in the UK?

CB G. okinawae are extremly rare to see captive bred.

CB C Cinctus come available only every so often, not really commonly available.

I was the owner of the LFS Sustainable M A in North Yorkshire UK and I run the group SMRUK for the last 7 years. I was a specialist dealer of CB ornamental Marines. 80% of my stock was CB. All of my personal fish at home have been exclusively CB. I am constantly in touch with wholesalers and breeders on the availability of CB Marines.

 

[i cant think]

What makes you think that?

You can get wild collected Yasha Gobies in the UK. I know where they are in stock at this moment.

Where have you seen CB S. dracula and S. nematodes for sale as CB in the UK?

CB G. okinawae are extremly rare to see captive bred.

CB C Cinctus come available only every so often, not really commonly available.

I was the owner of the LFS Sustainable M A in North Yorkshire UK and I run the group SMRUK for the last 7 years. I was a specialist dealer of CB ornamental Marines. 80% of my stock was CB. All of my personal fish at home have been exclusively CB. I am constantly in touch with wholesalers and breeders on the availability of CB Marines.

I’ve been working in LFSs for a few years now and CB fish really aren’t all that available anymore. They have a huge surge and then vanish off the market, however the LFSs I’ve been working in weren’t really after too many common species and we had things like Acanthurus achilles regularly and other more out there species that most other LFSs won’t get.

As for what makes me think we have such limited CB options is;
How many CB yellow tangs, interruptus angels, regal angels, personatus angels, Conspicuous angels, and so on have you seen available?
I’ve only seen 2 Yellow Tangs available over here and 1 Regal angel, the rest are nonexistent.

 

[Tony Thompson]

I’ve been working in LFSs for a few years now and CB fish really aren’t all that available anymore. They have a huge surge and then vanish off the market, however the LFSs I’ve been working in weren’t really after too many common species and we had things like Acanthurus achilles regularly and other more out there species that most other LFSs won’t get.

As for what makes me think we have such limited CB options is;
How many CB yellow tangs, interruptus angels, regal angels, personatus angels, Conspicuous angels, and so on have you seen available?
I’ve only seen 2 Yellow Tangs available over here and 1 Regal angel, the rest are nonexistent.

I asked why you think Yasha are not available in the UK wild collected. ?

I also asked where you have seen the goby species you mentioned available CB Dracula?

Like I said I am a CB Marine Ornamental specialist. , I was an owner and also have a aquaculture sciences licence. You need to look at my other post, those in the pictures are all the species currently in stock and available now at the wholesaler. If you pre order them in through TMC you have a wide range of species available. Angels are the most commonly available as they come from Bali Aquarich and can be imported through a consolidator. You can also direct import from Europe with a animal health certificate. I would see tanks full of CB YT at the wholesalers after each batch arrival from Biota.

I think you are mistaken with regards CB availability in the UK. If you private message me I can give you further information. Wholesale availability is quite extensive. Its the individual retailers who choose not to stock them, usually due to price and demand.

Which LFS do you work at?

 

[i cant think]

I asked why you think Yasha are not available in the UK wild collected. ?

I also asked where you have seen the goby species you mentioned available CB Dracula?

Like I said I am a CB Marine Ornamental specialist. , I was an owner and also have a aquaculture sciences licence. You need to look at my other post, those in the pictures are all the species currently in stock and available now at the wholesaler. If you pre order them in through TMC you have a wide range of species available. Angels are the most commonly available as they come from Bali Aquarich and can be imported through a consolidator. You can also direct import from Europe with a animal health certificate. I would see tanks full of CB YT at the wholesalers after each batch arrival from Biota.

I think you are mistaken with regards CB availability in the UK. If you private message me I can give you further information. Wholesale availability is quite extensive. Its the individual retailers who choose not to stock them, usually due to price and demand.

Which LFS do you work at?

Currently I’m working at The Ocean Project down in Dorset, however I have also worked in Reef Dreams for a short period of time.

Sorry, I missed the question about the Dracula goby and also didn’t realise the question was about Yasha Gobies

The Dracula Goby I’ve seen CB was in Reef Dreams a while ago. I believe they’ve also been labelled in online retailers however I could be wrong.

As for the Yasha Gobies, they’re rare in the wild and only a handful have ever been brought in from the wild. Almost all the ones in captivity now are going for be from Captive Breeding. This is why there were Wild Caught specimens that came in at 4000AUD for a trio. These guys are common in captivity however in their wild range they actually aren’t found in many areas.

 

[c_healy]

My list would be way too long… and mainly wrasses.

Came here to say the same. Lol

 

[Tony Thompson]

Currently I’m working at The Ocean Project down in Dorset, however I have also worked in Reef Dreams for a short period of time.

Sorry, I missed the question about the Dracula goby and also didn’t realise the question was about Yasha Gobies

The Dracula Goby I’ve seen CB was in Reef Dreams a while ago. I believe they’ve also been labelled in online retailers however I could be wrong.

As for the Yasha Gobies, they’re rare in the wild and only a handful have ever been brought in from the wild. Almost all the ones in captivity now are going for be from Captive Breeding. This is why there were Wild Caught specimens that came in at 4000AUD for a trio. These guys are common in captivity however in their wild range they actually aren’t found in many areas.

Yasha gobies are not rare in the wild or in the trade. They are rare captive bred though. IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern

As for Stonogobiops dracula, and Stonogobiops nematodes. I have never seen or heard of either species CB nor are they listed on the current CB marine Ornamental list of species. So I think you may be mistaken.

Why are you quoting Australian Dollars? (4000AUD)?

I am sorry but you seem to be completely mis informed.

I can see a wild Yasha for sale right this minute retail in the UK in stock £80

 

[Tony Thompson]

Are you in the UK or Australia ?

You seem to have googled Yasha in Australia, many species are ultra expensive in Australia because of strict biosecurity of certain species.

 

[Tony Thompson]

@i cant think , you need to speak to your manager at Ocean Project, you have them listed in your store at £72. available through TMC.

 

[Budman93]

I wish anthias were more readily available to be captive bred. Their splash of color would really round out my tank.

 

[i cant think]

Yasha gobies are not rare in the wild or in the trade. They are rare captive bred though. IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern

As for Stonogobiops dracula, and Stonogobiops nematodes. I have never seen or heard of either species CB nor are they listed on the current CB marine Ornamental list of species. So I think you may be mistaken.

Why are you quoting Australian Dollars? (4000AUD)?

I am sorry but you seem to be completely mis informed.

I can see a wild Yasha for sale right this minute retail in the UK in stock £80

First off;
Rare in the wild doesn’t necessarily mean endangered. You can have species that are rare in the wild but not endangered they’re just harder to find. Not everything rare is going to be endangered, it can be rare to see in the wild because of depth of water they’re found in, their size, or just in general their secrecy.

As for quoting AUD, if you read what I put then the reason for it is;
These were the most expensive specimens brought into captivity, and were not CB. As I said above, Wild Caught specimens of Stonogobiops yasha are incredibly rare and only a handful of specimens have been brought into captivity. I recommend you double check the specimens you see are wild caught and not captive bred.

@i cant think , you need to speak to your manager at Ocean Project, you have them listed in your store at £72. available through TMC.

As for this, why is this wrong? You stated above they go for £80, the specimens brought in from TMC are usually quite small, and they are certainly not wild caught. If you still run an LFS, you’ll likely price in a similar manner;
Smaller specimens will often be cheaper than the larger specimens (If that specimen you see is Wild Caught it will not be 0.5-1” and will likely be closer to 2” making that price jump).

 

[Tony Thompson]

First off;
Rare in the wild doesn’t necessarily mean endangered. You can have species that are rare in the wild but not endangered they’re just harder to find. Not everything rare is going to be endangered, it can be rare to see in the wild because of depth of water they’re found in, their size, or just in general their secrecy.

As for quoting AUD, if you read what I put then the reason for it is;
These were the most expensive specimens brought into captivity, and were not CB. As I said above, Wild Caught specimens of Stonogobiops yasha are incredibly rare and only a handful of specimens have been brought into captivity. I recommend you double check the specimens you see are wild caught and not captive bred.


As for this, why is this wrong? You stated above they go for £80, the specimens brought in from TMC are usually quite small, and they are certainly not wild caught. If you still run an LFS, you’ll likely price in a similar manner;
Smaller specimens will often be cheaper than the larger specimens (If that specimen you see is Wild Caught it will not be 0.5-1” and will likely be closer to 2” making that price jump).

Sorry mate but you are just plain wrong.

I have tried to explain and described my credentials and experience, I can do no more.

Captive Bred specimens (Yasha) are listed as such on the import sheet and the invoice as captive bred. Nothing to do with size.

CB are more expensive than wild collected no matter what size. Wholesale price of CB Yasha (I just checked as I have a wholesalers logon) is listed as twice the price of wild collected, your boss would be losing money selling them at your shops listed price if they where captive bred.

Your apparent lack of knowledge of the subject leaves me very concerned if you due to your lack of knowledge you are advising customers you serve that a specimen is Captive Bred (based on size?) if in fact it is Wild Collected. Your bosses invoice will clearly sate if its Captive Bred.

I will leave it there as you seem unwilling to listen to my advice.

 

[Coralsdaily]

Biota do all 3 ‘types’ of mandarin
The Reds (S. splendidus)
The Blues/Greens (S. splendidus)
The Spotted (S. picturatus)

Havn't seen the spotted ones up on their merch for a long while though

 

[Coralsdaily]

First off;
Rare in the wild doesn’t necessarily mean endangered. You can have species that are rare in the wild but not endangered they’re just harder to find. Not everything rare is going to be endangered, it can be rare to see in the wild because of depth of water they’re found in, their size, or just in general their secrecy.

Try tell this to the Hawaiian legislature.....

 

[nuxx]

I think biota has them, you should check them out. But yes n general for cleaner wrasses. They are such active fish and beautiful

Not at this time

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

I'd like to see some wrasse, more gobies (if I'm not mistaken, so far only yellow watchman and neon gobies are available captive bred?), and any popular "difficult" fish or ones that are hard to acquire. I totally support and would love to see a lot more captive breeding programs. I also believe many species just truly are not suited to captivity and are better off left in the wild, period. Just my 2 cents.

I currently have captive bred: yellow tang, striped fang blenny, clownfish.