Cute 'Finding Nemo' clownfish could be rising star of Taiwan's aquaculture sector

"Most aquariums actually sell mostly freshwater ornamental fishes, because saltwater ornamental fish only have a 20 percent chance of survival if they are kept in water tanks," Fang said.

When saltwater ornamental fish are caught, the netting used to trap them or the drugs used to daze them often damage the fish or leave drug residues adhered to their skin.

Those dangers, coupled with the suspension of feeding during the transportation process, results in the fish arriving at a private aquarium in a highly weakened state.

Fang estimates that the survival rate of ornamental fish in tanks may be less than 20 percent.

The breeding program, however, produces healthier fish that will be more than competitive with those caught in the wild.

"Captive breeding could solve the problem of keeping them alive in tanks," Fang said.

The trader strongly believes that the strong demand for clownfish and other ornamental fish triggered by Finding Nemo will continue unabated but with an environmental element added.

"Products that meet environmental requirements -- conserving the species and not damaging marine ecology simultaneously -- will remain in vogue," Fang believes.

In Southeast Asia, where ornamental fish species are abundant, fishermen often use drugs such as potassium cyanide to trap their targets, not only harming their catch but also nearby fish and the surrounding marine ecology.

Fang noted that the European Union, one of his three major export destinations (the others are Japan and the United States), is very strict on the origin of imports, and some EU countries will not accept ornamental fish caught in the wild.

"The captive bred fish could easily make inroads into their markets," he says.

If Taiwan has the skills to artificially breed the clownfish and then mass produce them at a consistent level of high quality, it will have a significant competitive edge in the market, Fang believes.

That may also allow many young clownfish like Nemo to thrive once again in the wild and protect the coral reefs that serve as their natural habitats.

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