Because coral reefs are regarded as globally threatened habitats, the collection of corals and other reef organisms to stock reef tanks is a source of concern among policymakers in the nations where coral reefs occur naturally. This concern has led to increasingly strict controls on the capture and export of wild reef life. Because the viability and growth of the international marine aquarium industry depends to a great extent on the continued availability of corals and other reef life to stock ornamental displays, environmentally sound alternatives to wild capture are urgently needed. We describe the demonstration of these techniques to a local aquarium exporting firm, the presentation of research findings at a national conference of aquarists and an aquarium industry trade show in the United States, and our joint efforts with a U.S. mainland-based company to promote and market the cultured soft corals to consumers at wholesale and retail levels. We conclude that soft coral farming can be commercially viable under favorable conditions, especially if carried out as part of a broader effort to supply a diverse menu of cultured reef organisms to the aquarium trade.
Corals are among the most reproductively prolific marine organisms on earth.
Paradoxically they are regarded as threatened species, because the marine habitats in which corals live have been subject to many abuses by humans. This project provides a useful example of how certain photosynthetic reef organisms, particularly the asexually reproducing colonial invertebrates, can be rapidly domesticated and mass produced for commercial purposes with no negative impact on the marine environment. This approach can yield both economic and environmental benefits.