divers and fish

[Charles Delbeek]

At 10:32 AM 10/31/2001 +0000, you wrote:
>Without recreational divers the academic community has NO hope of 
>spreading the word about the plight of the world's reefs.

I believe the marine reef keeping hobby has a very large % of "reef aware" 
individuals, perhaps more so than the diving community .. since these 
individuals have a great deal of experience with what is necessary for 
healthy corals to survive and grow and an appreciation of their delicacy. 
This is also a very useful group when it comes to spreading awareness of 
corals reefs and their inhabitants to the general public. I know several 
hobbyists who regularly have groups of elementary students visit their 
homes to view their reef aquaria and learn about coral reefs in general.

Aloha!




J. Charles Delbeek
Aquarium Biologist
Waikiki Aquarium
2777 Kalakaua Ave.
Honolulu, HI, USA 96815
808-923-9741
808-923-1771 FAX

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