Caracterização do aquarismo marinho do Estado do Ceará

Abstract

There are few studies about the use of marine ornamental aquatic organisms (MOAO) by aquarists in the State of Ceará. It is estimated that while about 90% of the species used in freshwater aquariums come from farms, only about 10% of the species used in saltwater aquariums are produced in captivity. Facing this reality, the general objectives of the present study are to characterize the marine aquarium in the state of Ceará, and show its importance and potential, in order to obtain a better understanding about the use of MOAO, and collaborate with the sustainable development of the productive chain of the marine aquarium hobby. Specifically, the objectives are to survey and analyze qualitative and quantitative data related to the use, maintenance and trade of MOAO by aquarists, shops and breeding farms; and to infer the origin of populations of species used by marine aquarists, delimiting the provenance between aquaculture and fishing. Through semi-structured questionnaires, information was obtained from 62 aquarists, four shopkeepers and a farm manager. According to the collected data, the number of stores and aquarists has been increasing significantly in the last years in the state of Ceará, and the aquarists have a preference for the genera Amphiprion concerning the fish, Zoanthus for the corals and Lysmata for the other aquatic organisms. It can be said that marine aquarists in the state of Ceará have on average up to 7 fish, up to 19 types of corals and up to 3 types of other aquatic organisms in their aquariums, with the confidence interval for the average population at 95%, evidencing the preference for marine aquariums of the reefs type over fish-only. It could also be inferred, with 95% reliability, that the percentage of MOAO used by aquarists in the State of Ceará from aquaculture is greater than 59%, with an estimated proportion of 62.7%. Also, 50% of aquarists invested in the aquarium the value of R$6,370.00 and the main factors of investments for the monthly maintenance of the hobby are in energy, food, nutrition, partial water change (PWC), water analysis, replacement of freshwater and specialized team for those who use the service. The total invested in the hobby is equivalent to R$1,629,982.00 and the majority of the interviewees are from the Metropolitan Region of Fortaleza.