Puerto Rico Asset Value -- Learning about Ornamental Fishing

Learning about Ornamental Fishing

Meg Lidrbauch

While Oscar, Mika, Anna, and Cesar were living it up on Mickey's boat, Becca, Paulina, Jamey and I drove up to Rincón to speak with Gary, an ornamental fisherman. The main difference between ornamental fishing, where fish are sent to pet stores for aquariums, and consumption fishing is that the catch has to be kept alive. This means that Gary can't touch the fish, as that would remove their protective slime coating and expose them to infection, and needs to ascend slowly giving them enough time to acclimate to the change in pressure. Gary and his partner are the only people in the Rincón area who SCUBA dive, with the others using lines.

Gary was clearly infatuated with his job, and enjoyed explaining to us how his system of tanks and filters worked, and how he ships the fish to his buyers in the mainland. A native of New Jersey, it was refreshing to talk with someone where language was not a barrier at all, and all of us walked away with as many pages of notes from the single visit as the past day and a half combined. He asked if we would be back, and seemed eager to remain a part of the project.