Are you an 'ethical' aquarist?

[hmph]

The following are statements of expressions of my own personal ideas and humble opinions and was posted in Arofanatics recently.

"
I am not exactly an experienced planted aquarist, but having spoken to a number of like-minded hobbyists and visitation of informational sites such as arofanatics, I have come to realise the need for a more 'ethical' planted aquarist in the hobby.

What do i mean by being an ethical planted aquarist? I guess it could be summed up in the following points:
1) Being as learned as possible on the topic of planted aquaria and its related sub-topics.

2) Making a concerted effort to gather planted aquaria information on your ownself through the usage of online and offline material.

3) Be prepared to put in much personal time and efforts in the building up, maintenance and upkeep of your planted tank.

4) Must be mindful of the fact that your tank contain living organisms which will not tolerate undesirable and unhealthy living conditions.

5) Must strive to provide the ideal and comfortable environment for your planted tank's inhabitants (Flora and Fauna).

6) In the process of provision of the ideal environment, you should be aware of the monetary funding required and work out a planted aquaria plan with proper and sufficient budgeting.

7) Must take a concerted effort to interact with fellow aquarists and share the propagation of excess plants (either thru sale, trade or giveaway) to encourage the growth of the hobby and proliferation of species of plants.

"

I have been trying to keep to the above 'code of conduct', how about you? If you might have any points to add or discussion, feel free to post. Thanks.


.kenny

[budak]

You can call what you wrote ethics if you like; I'd like to see it as plain common sense. (as some have mentioned, the aquarium hobby itself causes the death of countless millions of fish in transit - but i concern myself less with this particular "ethic" [since there seems to be no end to the death of many creatures for man's consumption and amusement) and more with the creatures that one personally takes charge of, as well as their overall sustainability as a species in the wild).

I find some people, of all ages, want to have their cake and eat it, i.e. they want the experience of a beautiful tank and fish, but can't seem to be bothered to take the effort to learn enough about the requirements. Spending lots of money on all sorts of equipment, kits and other gadgets seems to the preferred path, to real understanding of the conditions required for a healthy, thriving aquarium.

At the forum you mentioned, I can't help but sense an unwillingness to delve deeper into the wonderful intricacies of the aquaristic world (how often do you hear people saying, "donch be so cheem lah, bro, play play only mah"). Why bother to pursue something of worth when one refuses to even use the tremendous brain power nature has bestowed on our species to avoid blunders and misconceptions that could be easily avoided?

[victri]

Budak raised a good point. I recently encountered someone posting a query at an unnamed forum which he could easily have gotten tons of info on by simply using an internet search. I realize there are many people like that. Although some topics might have conflicting info, you can easily tell that no effort had been made to find out himself/herself from the way the questions are asked. Sometimes I try to help by posting links to good articles with the relevant info, but I know some don't bother to read it.

List of queries that I've encountered which show they didn't bother (for comic relief only, not directed at any specific person/s):
- My tank has 10 hours of direct sunlight, why I have algae hah?
- I'll just float all the plants in the pond, then transfer the nice ones to my tank in a few weeks.
- I have 1000W of light in my low maintenance, no CO2, no fert tank. Why my stem plants dying?
- I have pressurized CO2, OHF and airpump (to provide O2). Why my plants don't bubble?

I can't believe that so many people do not know how to use a search engine. I guess that reflects the attitude they come into this hobby with. What to do? They come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes I tell myself life is one big joke and just laugh it off.

[Plantbrain]

Vic, you just found yourself a job
If there's a need, post a link to the relevant places, like AQ!
This is an oppportunity to get folks involved more in plants.

Yes, many are lazy and don';t know how to use a search engine etc, but eventually they will..........

In the meantime just keep pounding them with info and common sense.

Keep a FAQ list and link handy.

As far as ethics? Heck, plants are WAY DOWN on the human Ethics list.
They don't have eye and are not all cuddly with two arms and legs, there's no identification to place our sense or moral ethics on them.
The plants cannot run away from us either.
They taste good, mummm

Rice is an aquatic plant, we eat a fair amount, is that unethical?
Excuse me, I had to wipe the rice off my mouth.

Rice seeds are all grains etc are baby plants. We are all guilt of plant muder, yes, those horrid vegetarians are baby plant murderers!

I'm calling the Plantagon( a leaf shaped Federal building in Washington DC). We will bomb and take away anyone's rights that is a a radical vegetarian plant killing terrorist in the name of national defense

I love giving those folks for animals right a hard time.
I really do believ in respect for all life and to understanding it.

I have killed animals, gutted them and ate them, same for raising my own veggies. That process keeps you in touch with being grateful for the food that thy have recieved and respect of life.
Quite a few of the folks stirring up animal rights issues with pet owners have never done this. Many folks today eat their meat from a resturant, cellophane plastic wrapper from the meat market, all sterile and removed from this whole process.

Yes, I've killed all sort of things but I try to be aware and try to minimize this as I learn. I have issues with folks saying animal life is more important than plant life. But we should all be united in conserving what little is left and bring the awareness into the home by keeping somethign like an aquarium ecosyste, and teach the kids. They are always interested and start about 4-7 years old to have a strong interest in it.
The interst wanes as they hit teenage years, but all other interest generally wanes then except for the opposite sex

Regards,
Tom Barr

[locus]

I would also consider and ethical aquarist to be one who is aware of the impact that introduced species of aquatic plants, invertebrates & fish can have on the natural environment.

It is important to ensure you introduce no foreign species to the wild.

[budak]

To add further thoughts:

Animals in the wild typically die rather horrid deaths: via predation, drowning, starvation, drought, accidents, etc.... anything but from a ripe old age. Squemishness at their death in man's hands seems to be no argument at all.

The idea of man harvesting from nature (as opposed to plants and animals cultivated and farmed) seems to draw two extreme positions: Some claim that man, being the apex of creation/evolution, has every right to make full use of nature as he wishes; others seek a complete stop to man's use of natural resources. The former claim reeks of a predetermined sense of self worth (coupled with much ignorance and arrogance), and the latter an uncritical notion of human development and its essential link to nature.

Most human activity could be argued to be "unnatural", in the way natural drives, instinct, and purely physiological limitations are overridden by a deliberate and complex intelligence that has grasped natural laws and applied them to man's own purposes. The habit of keeping pets is simply part of this, and whether or not these creatures of amusement come from the wild or breeders isn't really material. In any case, both instances involve substantial deaths that are "unnatural": fishes die in transit, flawed pups are culled, luck determines whether a rabbit ends up in a hutch or as a coat.

As I have said before: common sense (and perhaps enlightened self-interest) rather than "ethics" could be better applied in this hobby (or any worthy enterprise for that matter). Beyond that, much could be said of the value and prudence of exploiting nature in a sustainable manner (in the sense that natural biodiversity is preserved, and whatever resource that is used is not irrevocably extinguished).

My ramblings are not necessary coherent (at this unearthly hour), but picking them out (or apart) would certainly add value to this discussion.

[loupgarou]

well, the only "ethical" reason why man is consumer rather than consumed is might makes right.