by Saltwater Smarts | Aug 11, 2016 | Fish, Reef, ReefGen, Science, Travel
If you are ever visiting NYC and have time for a day trip out on Long Island, I would highly suggest the Long Island Aquarium and Exhibition Center out in Riverhead as an excellent family destination. The center is about a one-hour drive from Queens on the Long Island Expressway. As an added benefit, there is a hotel right next door to the facility if you decide to spend additional time in the area. I have been to many small public aquariums during my work travels around the world, and due to its initial apparent size, I expected to spend no more than one or two hours going through the entire exhibit with my wife and seven-year-old daughter. I usually grade any attraction by the quality of the exhibits and how well it holds my daughter’s attention. I must say the Long Island Aquarium surprised me as we ended up spending up to four hours there and it was a lot bigger than I expected. My daughter was pleasantly entertained the entire time without any complaints. As you walk towards the entrance, a beautiful fountain greets you and draws you in by Saltwater Smarts | May 22, 2016 | Corals, DIY, Fish, Opinion, Reef, Science, Tanks
Kauai, Hawaii coastline taken during a helicopter tourI have been lucky in my life to have had the opportunity to dive in some of the prettiest and most diverse underwater habitats on earth. Without exception, the nicest dive sites are far from civilization, which stands to reason. But today I want to talk about the places that are in trouble biologically speaking. The outer Hawaiian IslandsLast year, I went to some of the outer Hawaiian Islands for a nice vacation and, of course, to dive. My wife and I went to Hawaii on our wedding anniversary 44 years ago, and I dove then too, so I had an opportunity to assess the place decades later. The diving then was good, plenty of varied life with a smattering of sharks. by Saltwater Smarts | May 1, 2016 | Corals, Equipment, Fish, Reef, Science
Fields of maricultured Acropora in Onna, Okinawa, JapanOkinawa, Japan is known for its great diving and lush coral reefs. Going into it, I didn’t know what to expect with this dive. I’ve heard all sorts of cautionary tales about diving in Okinawa due to its strong currents, but I’ve also heard that the quality of the reefs is practically unmatched. The day of my scheduled dive was rough. It started raining heavily, and that pretty much limited the dive locations that were available for safety reasons. The single dive location would be just off the coast of our hotel in the Manza Beach area of Onna-son. Onna is located in the central part of the island and is where most of the resort hotels are located. by Saltwater Smarts | Mar 24, 2016 | Cephalopods, Conservation, Equipment, Fish, Industry, Reef, Science
For 28 years, RVS Fishworld has been training and supplying fisherman in the Philippines with the knowledge and equipment needed for sustainable net collectionThe ocean is full of the unknown, allowing people’s imaginations to run wild. Combine that with film producers, writers, or groups with a divisive agenda, and you get mockumentaries entertaining the idea of a monster shark as big as a submarine, the internet claiming cephalopods are from another planet, and articles with an extremely misguided view of the marine aquarium fish trade. Over the past several months, I have taken a stand against pure failures of journalism, vigorously commenting with factual evidence that the journalist disregarded (intentionally or unintentionally). From “Mercury Gate” to the most recent completely unsubstantiated claim that 90% of all marine fish collected today for aquarium purposes are collected with the use of sodium cyanide, these failures cannot go unchecked.After 15 years in the hobby and 10 years within the industry, I knew that figure was fabricated before the coffee spitting out of my mouth hit the table in front of me. But let’s break this down. Why the sensational headline is false In a study done in 2004 and 2005, 11 million marine fish, comprised of 1,802 species, were imported into the United States. Our marine fish come from several areas (this can vary slightly today as some collectors are restricted by governments and changes in law), including Australia, Bahamas, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Cambodia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, French Polynesia, Great Britain, Haiti, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Palau, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Tonga, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, aaaaaand Yemen. Let me catch my breath here
