United States of America trade in ornamental fish

Abstract

Ornamental fish production is among the leading cash crops of the United States of America aquaculture economy, and retail value of the fish trade is worth approximately US$1,000 million. However, few studies exist to document this trade. Using import and export documents we report trends in total values for the U.S. trade in ornamental fish. Also, we determined the number and value of the most commonly imported ornamental fish. In 1992, approximately 201 million fish valued at $44.7 million were imported into the U.S. The port of Los Angeles handled 39% of all trade activity, Miami 22%, New York 16%, Tampa 6%, and Honolulu 6%. Freshwater fish accounted for approximately 96% of the total volume and 80% of the value of the imports. Most freshwater ornamental fish were farm-raised and imported from Southeast Asia. Most U.S. exports of ornamental fish were cultured in the state of Florida. Although saltwater fish had a high market value (20% of the declared value of the imports), the volume of these fish was only 4%. Most imported and exported saltwater ornamental fish were collected from the wild. Of the 1,539 species declared as ornamental fish, 32 species dominated the trade. These were all of freshwater origin. The guppy Poecilia reticulata and neon tetra Paracheirodon innesi were the most popular ornamental fish kept in U.S. households. The average prices paid for imported ornamental freshwater fish were 45 cents for egg layers and 22 cents for live bearers. The results of this study document the importance of the ornamental fish industry and identifies the most valuable species in the trade for potential domestic culture and protection in the wild.