The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Electronic Theses and Dissertations Fogler Library Summer 8-22-2020 Senders, Receivers, and Spillover Dynamics: Understanding Transformative Forces of Aquaculture in the Marine Aquarium Trade Bryce Risley University of Maine, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd Part of the Marine Biology Commons Recommended Citation Risley, Bryce, "Senders, Receivers, and Spillover Dynamics: Understanding Transformative Forces of Aquaculture in the Marine Aquarium Trade" (2020). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3314. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd/3314 This Open-Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SENDERS, RECEIVERS, AND SPILLOVER DYNAMICS: UNDERSTANDING TRANSFORMATIVE FORCES OF AQUACULTURE IN THE MARINE AQUARIUM TRADE By Bryce Risley B.S. University of New Mexico, 2014 A THESIS Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science (in Marine Policy and Marine Biology) The Graduate School The University of Maine May 2020 Advisory Committee: Joshua Stoll, Assistant Professor of Marine Policy, Co-advisor Nishad Jayasundara, Assistant Professor of Marine Biology, Co-advisor Aaron Strong, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies (Hamilton College) Christine Beitl, Associate Professor of Anthropology Douglas Rasher, Senior Research Scientist of Marine Ecology (Bigelow Laboratory) Heather Hamlin, Associate Professor of Marine Biology No photograph in this thesis may be used in another work without written permission from the photographer. Copyright 2020 Bryce Risley All Rights Reserved SENDERS, RECEIVERS, AND SPILLOVER DYNAMICS: UNDERSTANDING TRANSFORMATIVE FORCES OF AQUACULTURE IN THE MARINE AQUARIUM TRADE By Bryce Risley Thesis Advisors: Dr. Joshua Stoll, Dr. Nishad Jayasundara An Abstract of the Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree(s) of Master of Science (Marine Policy) Master of Science (Marine Biology) May 2020 Industry and academic conversations on aquaculture’s role in the marine aquarium trade are often centered on production advancements, biological and reproductive constraints of concerned species, and conservation deliverables and often overlook the possible socioeconomic consequences of aquaculture production. Due attention is yet to be spent on understanding broader stakeholder sentiment on aquaculture production and the toll it may have on specialized suppliers such as those in the Sri Lankan marine ornamental fishery. Utilizing a framework derived from Coupled Human and Natural Systems, research found suppling stakeholders predominantly unable to participate in aquaculture production due to various access limitations. When viewed alongside increases in aquaculture effort and production in the United States, these limitations indicated disproportions in vulnerability and the adaptive capacity of marine aquarium trade stakeholder groups, warranting concerns of stakeholder obsolescence. To better describe access limitations, a small-scale marine ornamental aquaculture lab was constructed and tested for efficiency using the yellowtail anemonefish. Literature on aquaculture methodologies and recirculating system construction often fall short of describing knowledge and resource barriers faced by practitioners, indicating blind spots in the industry’s approach to advancing production methods of marine ornamental species. Aquaculture efforts demonstrated barriers to educational, technological, and monetary resources necessary to successfully complete the life cycle of commonly aquacultured species. The resulting recirculating aquaculture system may serve as a model for use by practitioners seeking to culture a variety of demersal spawning fishes. This research indicates greater attention should be given to underrepresented stakeholder groups who are presently marginalized by current development trends in marine ornamental aquaculture. Additionally, negative feedback loops generated by environmental and socioeconomic relationships in the described systems suggest extreme caution and immediate action should be taken to preserve the roles and associated livelihoods of key stakeholder groups in the marine aquarium trade. DEDICATION This work has always been a personal dedication to my grandparents, Carolyn Darnell and Fredrick Stanley Wilson. Together, Carolyn and Stan cofounded the Albuquerque Aquarium Association (AAA), which was incorporated into the Albuquerque Biopark in 2006. Their influence on me during my childhood and years as a young adult have seemingly fated this thesis research. Were it not for their work at the Albuquerque Biopark throughout the 1980’s through the early 2000’s, I would not have discovered my love for marine life and the beautiful and complicated world of the marine aquarium industry. i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I owe my gratitude to the many professionals in the marine aquarium industry in Sri Lanka, the United States and elsewhere in the world who have shared their time and experiences with me. Their knowledge has aided me in writing this thesis and has taught me that there is still so much I have to learn. I thank my advisor, Dr. Nishad Jayasundara, who provided me with the resources and independence to learn aquaculture and biology through practical applications; advisor Dr. Joshua Stoll for sharing his expertise in social science research which helped further the vision of this work; and my committee members, Dr. Aaron Strong, Dr. Christine Beitl, Dr. Douglas Rasher, and Dr. Heather Hamlin for their guidance, patience, enthusiasm, encouragement, and intellectual expertise as I’ve developed this work. I thank my grandparents Stanley and Carolyn Wilson and my parents Edward and Kristen Risley for instilling in me a love and appreciation of nature and wildlife. They privileged me with many opportunities to experience and explore the outdoors and interact with wildlife. I’d like to thank Dr. David Townsend and Dr. William Ellis of the School of Marine Sciences for supporting my research efforts by providing many of the tools and resources. which have contributed to the work in this thesis. Additionally, without the administrative work and the supportive and positive attitude of Carrie Love, it’s likely I’d still be trying to sort out financial and credit discrepancies of which there were many throughout my time in the program. I thank the many undergraduates, Dylan Lucero, Carly Rahl, Stella Moreno, Kelsey Davis, Kari Costopoulos, Brittany Torchia, Jessica Wibby, Josh White, Sophie Fitz, Syeira Clark, Anika Bartie, Abby Bernier, Jason Morrill, Logan Early, Gretchen Spencer, Ande ii Ramirez who expressed interest in my work and sought opportunities to help maintain the aquaculture system which was an integral part of this thesis. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION …………………………………………………………………………………….i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS …………………………………………………………………….….ii LIST OF TABLES …………………………………………………………………………...…..ix . LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………………….x LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ……………………………………………………………….….xii CHAPTER 1. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE MARINE AQUARIUM TRADE……………………...1 1.1. Introduction………….………………………………………………………………..1 1.1.1. Supply chain structure………………………………………………………1 1.1.2. Coral reef vulnerability and the marine aquarium trade……………...….....4 1.1.3. Aquaculture’s less described potential……………………………………...8 2. TRANFORMATIVE ROLES OF AQUACULTURE IN THE MARINE AQUARIUM TRADE…………………………………………………………………………………..10 2.1. Introduction: A rapidly changing industry . ………………………………………...10 2.1.1. Industry background………………………………………………………11 2.1.2. Trade communication and supply chain traceability……………………...13 2.1.3. Telecoupled systems………………………………………………………14 2.1.3.1. A focus on spillover systems……………………………………………16 2.1.4. Regulatory oversight………………………………………………………19 2.1.4.1. United States trade oversight……………………………………20 2.1.4.2. Sri Lanka trade oversight………………………………………..21 iv 2.1.5. The value of an ornamental shrimp in a telecoupled system…………..….23 2.2. Methods………………………………………………………………………….…..26 2.2.1. Participant recruitment and study area……………………………….…....27 2.2.2. Participant observation and data collection…………………………….…29 2.2.3. Coding approach……………………………………………………….….32 2.3. Results…………………………………………………………………………….…33 2.3.1. Sri Lanka: A case study………………………………………………...…34 2.3.2. Sri Lanka: Colonialism, war, and development…………………….……..34 2.3.3. Sri Lanka: Climate and physical geography………………………………36 2.3.4. Emergence of a sending system…………………………………….……..38 2.3.5. Collecting marine ornamental species in Sri Lanka………………………41 2.3.6. Sri Lanka: Fire shrimp, Lysmata debelius……………………..….………46 2.3.7. Sending system disruptions……………………………………….………49 2.3.7.1. Pollution and telecoupling……………………………….……...50 2.3.7.2. Mushroom exporters……………………………………….……52 2.3.7.3. Changing environments…………………………………….…...54 2.3.7.4. Overharvesting fisheries…………………………………….…..56 2.3.7.4.1. Technology advances overharvest………..…….….….58 2.3.8. Telecoupling and violence…………………………………………….......59 2.3.9. Social and economic flows…………………………………………….….62 2.3.10. Aquaculture in a sending system………………………………………...63 2.3.11. Conferences and tradeshows…………………………………………..…69 2.3.12. Receiving system challenges…………………………………….………72