[cheeks69]

It is estimated that between 1.5 and 2 million people worldwide keep marine aquaria [6] , with 600,000 households in the United States alone [7]. Estimates place the value of the marine ornamental trade at US$200-330 million per year [8, 9] with 80% of the trade in stony corals and 50% of the trade in marine fish going to the United States [10]. Unlike freshwater aquaria species, where 90% of fish species are currently farmed, the great majority of marine aquaria are stocked from wild-caught species [11]. With nearly all tropical marine aquarium fish and invertebrates in trade taken directly from coral reefs and adjacent habitats, the aquarium industry has attracted some controversy [12-15], particularly regarding its sustainability [16]. The high visibility of marine ornamental products has made the trade a magnet for criticism [17]. Articles in the press have tended to focus on the negative impacts of the trade with headlines often making the presumption that the trade of marine ornamentals is incompatible with reef conservation.

http://www.ornamental-fish-int.org/d...11492&gid=4838