So apparently the US lifts the freshwater stingray ban once in awhile. they become available for import/ordering every few months, but only in tiny numbers to limited ammounts of people. I'm thinking about getting one for possible breeding purposes, they're kinda in a rock and a hard place in the wild.
Now here's the kicker, why the US usually has them banned from import:
'They might get lose and breed in our waterways, eat our native species, and harm people with their venom.'
this is a valid concern, but lets look deeper into the matter.
Simply, they cant make the transition into our waterways. they need:
1) Pure, clean water. take then nitrate count in the water, multiply it by 4, and thats the number on the scale in terms of how strng it is on the rays. Lethal.
2) Soft, sandy substrate. Very few waterways have this, most mud or rocks, and none are pure enough to sustain the rays.
3) pH of 5.5-6.0. Only acid rain lakes here are that low.
A ray put into any one of those bad situations abve will die within 24-48 hours, no questions asked. Ridiculous how the feds ban an animal which can be helped by knowledgeable aquarists around the US to survive in our tanks, if not in the wild. there's species of pup fishes which are only found in aquariums today, especially in germany, which they are illegal to keep. BUT! They are extinct in the wild, only breeding populations exist in home aquaria. Feds don't know a dang thing about biology...
Now here's the kicker, why the US usually has them banned from import:
'They might get lose and breed in our waterways, eat our native species, and harm people with their venom.'
this is a valid concern, but lets look deeper into the matter.
Simply, they cant make the transition into our waterways. they need:
1) Pure, clean water. take then nitrate count in the water, multiply it by 4, and thats the number on the scale in terms of how strng it is on the rays. Lethal.
2) Soft, sandy substrate. Very few waterways have this, most mud or rocks, and none are pure enough to sustain the rays.
3) pH of 5.5-6.0. Only acid rain lakes here are that low.
A ray put into any one of those bad situations abve will die within 24-48 hours, no questions asked. Ridiculous how the feds ban an animal which can be helped by knowledgeable aquarists around the US to survive in our tanks, if not in the wild. there's species of pup fishes which are only found in aquariums today, especially in germany, which they are illegal to keep. BUT! They are extinct in the wild, only breeding populations exist in home aquaria. Feds don't know a dang thing about biology...
