Abstract

The rapid expansion of import and export trade of ornamental fish in the Dominican Republic is posing a challenge to the appropriate management of this resource were a balance in protection of vulnerable or threatened fish stocks but avoiding unnecessary burdens to the generation of income thought trade of permitted species. Is in this sense that the Viceministry of Coastal and Marine Resources of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has embarked in the conduct of an inventory of the companies dedicated to production, catch and trade or ornamental fish. The main purpose of this work is to produce basic information for management by determining species caught and exported and if the imported species to the country can become a threat for native and endemic species. We visited 20 ornamental fish vendors and our preliminary results shows that 95 % of them are lacking the necessary permits to sell fish and that many species are also introduce to the country without permits. The goldfish, Carassius auratus, is the preferred species gotten by buyers. Many of the imported specimens are liberated in water bodies of the country.

PDF Preview