Project Piaba

Many ornamental freshwater aquarium fish, including the cardinal tetra and the discus (Symphysodon ssp.), are sourced from the Amazon River Basin area. The Rio Negro region is the home of more than 100 different species of fish that are important to the pet fish trade.{{Cite web|url = http://www.feow.org/ecoregions/details/rio_negro|title = 314: Rio Negro|accessdate = 6 August 2015|website = Freshwater Ecoregions of the World|publisher = The Nature Conservancy|last1 = Petry|first1 = Paulo|last2 = Hales|first2 = Jennifer|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171201042750/http://www.feow.org/ecoregions/details/rio_negro|archive-date = 1 December 2017|url-status = dead}} In fact, several species, including cardinal tetras, show the adaptive trait of iridescence which may provide lower visibility in a blackwater environment.

Project Piaba started with an ecological baseline study of the region which was conducted in 1989 by a group of researchers and students from the Universidade do Amazonas (UA) and the National Institute of Amazon Research (INPA).{{Cite journal|url = http://www.ornamental-fish-int.org/research-support/projeto-piaba|title = Project Piaba|last1 = Chao|first1 = Ning Labbish|date = May 2002|journal = Ornamental Fish International|access-date = 6 August 2015|issue = 39|last2 = Prang|first2 = Gregory|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090718211713/http://www.ornamental-fish-int.org/research-support/projeto-piaba|archive-date = 18 July 2009|url-status = dead}} This initial survey discovered and documented the importance of the fish trade to the local economy, and it led the researchers to wonder about the impact the fishing had on the environment.

The ornamental fish trade in the Rio Negro region is considered "substantial by local standards, representing approximately US$ 3 million per year with over 30 million live fish exported annually."{{Cite journal|title = Phylogeography of a flooded forest specialist fish from central Amazonia based on intron DNA: the cardinal tetra Paracheirodon axelrodi|journal = Freshwater Biology|date = 2009-01-01|volume = 54|issue = 6|pages = 1216–1232|doi = 10.1111/j.1365-2427.2009.02172.x|first1 = GEORGINA M.|last1 = COOKE|first2 = NING L.|last2 = CHAO|first3 = LUCIANO B.|last3 = BEHEREGARAY| bibcode=2009FrBio..54.1216C }} About 40,000 people in the region, many of them caboclos (river-dwelling families) are dependent on the income from their fisheries.{{Cite web|url = http://en.microcosmaquariumexplorer.com/wiki/Buy_A_(Wild)_Fish_-_Save_A_Tree|title = Buy a (Wild) Fish - Save a Tree|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Microcosm: Aquarium Explorer}}

In the 1950s, Herbert R. Axelrod and Willi Schwarz had begun shipping aquarium fish out of Barcelos in Brazil.[https://web.archive.org/web/20170604101719/http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/news/fishkeeping-news/articles/2017/5/30/obituary-dr-herbert-r-axelrod "Obituary: Dr. Herbert R. Axelrod"]. Practical Fishkeeping, 30 May 2017. Archived 20 June 2017. In 1991, Ning Labbish Chao and Gregory Prang founded Project Piaba in order to support the local fisheries and in concert with them, help protect the habitat of collected fishes. Because of the "gentle" way the fish are caught and most of the fish caught for the aquarium trade are short-lived and would naturally die out during the dry season, the ecological impact of catching the fish is considered minimal. The fish are also not caught by fish farmers during their breeding season.{{Cite web|url = http://www.fishchannel.com/fish-species/freshwater-profiles/cardinal-tetra-2.aspx|title = Cardinal Tetra Fish Stats|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Fish Channel}} The cardinal tetra, especially, is considered a renewable resource.{{Cite news|url = http://www.takepart.com/article/2013/06/24/endangered-fish-dna-barcoding|title = Can DNA Barcoding Really Save Endangered Fish?|last = Conniff|first = Richard|date = 24 June 2013|work = Take Part|access-date = 7 August 2015}} Project Piaba assesses the sustainability of the species farmed in the Rio Negro area by using the "F value" which estimates the portion of the catch from the total biomass.{{Cite web|url = http://www.opefe.com/PPiaba_webver.doc|title = Forever 'Project Piaba'|date = 2008|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Oregon Piranha Exotic Fish Exhibit (OPEFE)|last = Chao|first = Ning Labbish|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150924060737/http://www.opefe.com/PPiaba_webver.doc|archive-date = 24 September 2015|url-status = dead}}

The center of the Rio Negro aquarium trade, Barcelos, now celebrates ornamental fish in a festival held every January in conjunction with the annual research expedition of Project Piaba. A stadium, known as Piabodrome, was even built for the festival. The first festival took place in 1994, and a permanent exhibit highlighting the fish was installed in Barcelos by Project Piaba that same year.{{Cite journal|url = http://www.tfhmagazine.com/details/articles/hope-along-the-rio-negro-part-1-the-view-from-manaus.htm|title = Hope Along the Rio Negro Part 1: The View From Manaus|last = Carey|first = Randy|date = March 2007|journal = The Fish Hobbyist Magazine|access-date = 7 August 2015}} Money donated by ichthyologist Herbert Axelrod helped support a lab and then later, the Centre for Aquatic Conservation, which has helped educate, support research and awareness of the project.{{Cite web|url = http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6176|title = Cardinals Answer Prayers|date = 2 January 2014|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Practical Fishkeeping|last = Hill|first = Nathan|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150924081003/http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6176|archive-date = 24 September 2015|url-status = dead}} The Centre was first opened in 1997. Other funds have come from the Association of Ornamental Fish Breeders and Exporters of Amazonas (ACEPOAM) for research on both the fish and the welfare of the fish farmers.

Scott Dowd is, as of 2015, the director of Project Piaba. He leads the yearly expeditions with experts from around the world, volunteers, and even family visiting the Amazon region.{{Cite news|url = http://www.boston.com/sponsored/extra/sponsored-ne-aquarium-fishstory|title = The Life Aquatic|last = Montgomery|first = Sy|date = 13 April 2015|work = The Boston Globe|access-date = 7 August 2015|via = Boston.com}}

The project has acted as a case study for other, similar projects. Areas such as the Western Ghats in India and areas of Bali are beginning to use similar practices to make money from the fish trade and sustain the environment of the fish. Project Piaba is often used to show how groups can support the environment while providing economic stimulus to a poor region of the world.{{Cite news|url = http://www.petproductnews.com/July-2015/International-Waters-Industry-Unfairly-Attacked--Again/|title = International Waters: Industry Unfairly Attacked... Again!|last = Dawes|first = John|date = July 2015|work = Pet Product News|access-date = 7 August 2015}}{{Cite web|url = https://www.aza.org/Membership/detail.aspx?id=30396|title = How to Create Protected Areas and Provide for Exhibits in the Future by Promoting a Socially and Environmentally Beneficial Aquarium Fish Trade|website = Association of Zoos and Aquariums|last1 = Firchau|first1 = Beth|last2 = Dowd|first2 = Scott|last3 = Tlusty|first3 = Michael|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010619/https://www.aza.org/Membership/detail.aspx?id=30396|archive-date = 2016-03-05|url-status = dead}} In addition, the sustainable sourcing of fish is also a stimulus to the idea of "beneficial home fishkeeping", which emphasizes proper fish care, which, in turn, supports those who catch the fish in the wild.{{Cite news|url = http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6702|title = New Group to Examine Benefits of Fishkeeping Hobby|date = 27 March 2015|work = Practical Fishkeeping|access-date = 7 August 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150404051803/http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6702|archive-date = 4 April 2015|url-status = dead}} When no incentive exists to fish, individuals in the Rio Negro area turn to less environmentally friendly means of support, such as logging or cattle ranching.{{Cite web|url = http://www.kearsney.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=518:project-piaba-trip-to-the-amazon-&catid=62:latest-news&Itemid=207|title = Matt Needham's Amazon Trip Follow-Up|date = 2003|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Kearsney Old Boys|last = Needham|first = Matt}} In fact, Project Piaba aims to actively discourage domestic farming of fish that are also sustainable resources, like the cardinal tetra, because it takes the financial incentive away from protecting the rain forest of the Rio Negro area.{{Cite book|title = Savages and Beasts: The Birth of the Modern Zoo|last = Rothfels|first = Nigel|publisher = Johns Hopkins University Press|year = 2002|isbn = 978-0801869105|location = Baltimore, Maryland}}{{Cite book|title = Fish Conservation: A Guide to Understanding and Restoring Global Aquatic Biodiversity and Fishery Resources|last = Helfman|first = Gene S.|publisher = Island Press|year = 2007|isbn = 9781559635950|location = Washington, DC|pages = 401–402}}

The project has the support of aquaria and zoos around the world{{Cite web|url = http://www.pittsburghzoo.org/Conservation/BeyondOurOwnBackyard|title = Beyond Our Own Backyard|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium}}{{Cite web|url = http://www.umich.edu/~esupdate/julaug2000/dowd.htm|title = Conservation Spotlight|date = 2000|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Endangered Species Update|publisher = School of Natural Resources and Environment|last1 = Dowd|first1 = Scott|last2 = Tlusty|first2 = Michael}} and also from the International Union for Conservation of Nature.{{Cite web|url = http://blog.kendall-press.com/2014/11/project-piaba/|title = Sustainability, Community and Project Piaba|date = 13 November 2014|accessdate = 7 August 2015|website = Kendall Press}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• [http://projectpiaba.org/ Official Page]
• [https://vimeo.com/124670986 Project Piaba: For Ornamental Fish] (video)

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Category:Fishkeeping

Category:Ecological experiments

Category:Environmental research

Category:Rio Negro (Amazon)

Category:Sustainable fishery

Category:Fisheries science

Category:Nature conservation in Brazil

Category:Amazon rainforest