Re: NANFA-- position on educational collecting

Harry Knaub (harryknaub_at_netrax.net)
Thu, 30 Aug 2001 09:49:10 -0400

I'm thinking of the woman who was setting the tables for Saturday's banquet. She
walked over to the tanks at the side of the room where we were admiring the two
freshwater jellyfish that Casper had "collected". The look on her face and the
disbelief in her voice when she was told that yes, they were from a nearby lake,
made me think that this is what educational collecting is all about. She left
there that day with new knowledge and a new appreciation of what lives in the
world around her.

Harry Knaub

"B.G. Granier" wrote:

> Well said Rob!
>
> As native fish fans, we need to focus on the enjoyment and therefore
> education of our fellows in the need for preservation instead of
> commerialization!
>
> BG
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Denkhaus, Robert <DenkhaR_at_Ci.Fort-Worth.TX.US>
> To: <nanfa_at_aquaria.net>
> Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 3:46 PM
> Subject: RE: NANFA-- position on educational collecting
>
> > I have been sitting back watching this exchange and enjoying the give and
> > take. I've been tempted several times to chime in but have refrained
> > because I am working on an article for AC (Chris, you know what I am
> talking
> > about) and this discussion is in many ways at the heart of it. Without
> > making a future AC article too redundant, I do want to address one facet
> of
> > this issue (clipped below):
> >
> > > > As I suggested in my original post, perhaps we should encourage
> > > > more people to get some of their native fish from tank-raised
> > > > stocks. That will help to reduce the number of fish that are taken
> > > > from the wild....It's something I'd like to see reflected in
> > > > the NANFA mission statement.
> > >
> > > An honorable sentiment, to be sure. But would that lead to the
> > > commercialization of native fishes? And would
> > > commercialization be a good
> > > thing or a bad thing?
> >
> > In my humble opinion, Shireen is not seeing the big picture in her
> statement
> > (top portion). Yes, we should encourage the use of tank raised stock for
> > those that are simply interested in "collecting" fish like stamps and
> > baseball cards. If their goal is to be able to claim to having a
> "complete
> > set" of darters, shiners, sunfish, etc. then this will completely satisfy
> > them. But what about those folks that use the keeping of native fish as
> an
> > opportunity to get out and enjoy the natural world and to bring a piece of
> > it back home whether it is for education or recreation or even science?
> We
> > have all been to the zoo and seen lions but how many of us really know
> what
> > a lion's habitat looks like except through a television screen or on the
> > glossy pages of a magazine? We all know what a wood duck looks like and
> > what kind of area it might live in. But how many of us know how each
> > feather gleams with an array of colors under different light conditions?
> > There are certain levels of nature appreciation that can't be attained
> > completely in the field or in captivity but through a combination of the
> > two, a person can develop a certain oneness with nature.
> >
> > Personally, I consider myself one lucky SOB because in my job I get to see
> > animals, plants, and every part of nature in both situations. I want to
> > share these experiences with my children and the other children and adults
> > that I work with at the Nature Center. I can spout facts and figures all
> > day long about how beautiful and important these fish are and explain how
> > vitally important their habitat is or I can take them down to the stream
> and
> > let them immerse themselves in nature and gain their own personal
> connection
> > to it. If they take home a few red shiners or even a couple darters so
> that
> > they can watch them in their home aquarium, then maybe they will support
> the
> > next attempt to block a zoning change or something else that will result
> in
> > habitat loss. Modern society allows us relatively few opportunties to
> truly
> > become connected to nature the way that the old-timers could. Please
> don't
> > suggest taking this one opportunity from us.
> >
> > Regarding Chris' statement (lower portion), commercialization, in my mind,
> > would definitely be a bad thing. Although I remember a wildlife professor
> > explain to me that the best way to save a species was to place a dollar
> > value on it, commercialization carries way to much baggage. Consider the
> > "native" plant industry. Here in Texas, the native plant movement (which
> is
> > intimately tied to xeriscaping, a good thing) has resulted in the "taming"
> > of many of these wild plants. Once in the nursery it seems that even
> plants
> > are subject to domestication and the result is the production of
> cultivars.
> > This has also happened in the herp industry which started out the same way
> > as native fish. Today, it is possible to find virtually any color variant
> > (read: mutation) of a rat snake but try to find a good old fashioned
> normal
> > colored Texas rat snake. Commercialization of native fish will result in
> > the same situation..."I don't want that multi-colored longear sunfish,
> give
> > me that 'snow' longear" will be commonly heard.
> >
> > We can learn a lot from the mistakes that the herpers have made over the
> > years. They went commercial and now are being highly regulated in many
> > areas. They have either intentionally or acceidentally produced a huge
> > array of mutations which they now actually breed for. And, the herper who
> > really knows much about the natural habitat of the animals that they keep
> > are few and far between. However, those few herpers who still venture
> > afield in search of wild critters (oftentimes just for photography
> purposes)
> > are some of the best all-around naturalists that I know.
> >
> > Just my 2 cents worth.
> >
> > Rob Denkhaus
> > Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge
> >
> >
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/ reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes
/ Association"
/ This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association
/ nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word
/ subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to
/ nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to
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/ For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org