Worth your 10minutes quick read.
This publication cites a study finding 50% of marine aquarium imported into the USA, originating mostly from the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, have been exposed to cyanide poisoning. It assumes it is due to continuing use of potassium cyanide in catching ornamental fish. Without discounting that cause, it may also be good to look into the possibility of continuing exposure of ornamental fishes to potassium cyanide in areas such as Les where use of cyanide has ceased for over a decade but ornamental fishing continues using other methods like barrier nets.
In last year STARR expedition in Les, I remember a dive with Lutfi Afiq Rosli who pointed to a submassive coral with purple circular taint and said afterwards it is due to to potassium cyanide whose presence and effects linger in the ecosystem long after the practice of cyanide fishing has ceased.
Then there is the matter of cyanide-laden polyps eaten by small fishes eaten in turn by bigger fishes which are caught by fishermen and ends in our digestive tracts.
This publication contain statistics and references that would be great for proposals Angelia Siagian Elaine S. Kwee Toni Massey Cipto Aji Gunawan as well background reading for groups/volunteers coming to Les Kerry Wiedemann Annisa Ruzuar Anne K. Adijuwono Rucina Ballinger Gede Yudarta Made Sresti Cath Fearnside-Tydeman Cat Wheeler Eames Demetrios Rianti Bieler Jack Xiao
Pavlo Zdorenko Les is just one of the thousand of end points of grasping tentacles originating from the Human Wanting in first world countries to capture, own and display something beautiful from marine tropics, aquarium in this case. Fishermen in Les don't catch ornamental fish without prior order. Among all the actors involved in aquarium trade, they have the more decent excuse of doing so so they can feed themselves and their families. Stamping out ornamental fishing in Les without stamping our the originating Wanting means the tentacle will just move somewhere else. You may want to turn your gaze on that Human Wanting and share us your thoughts on what we can do with it so it stops the destruction of the reefs we all love.
https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/reef_fish_in_peril/pdfs/Po...