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Lately I have been pondering the thought of genuine conservation efforts to protect the L46 through managed breeding programs.

With concerns over the state of the L46 natural habitat, it seems to me that there should be a definitive group, with standards and guides to accommodate a breeding program.

I notice mention of registered breeders on the home page, but I didn't see anything anywhere else on teh page that provides further information about this.

The register is very old & out of date, I tried to register 2 years ago, but nothing came of it so I gave up.
I don't think all the moderators are still active, so it may be time to have a look at this & see if it can be updated?
Hopefully this site already has everything in place to share breeding advice & has the members that are dedicated to the survival of the L46.

If I ever started breeding I would be more than happy to have someone come and check my setup and look at my babies so that I could go on a list of reputable breeders.....I'm a long way from that point though!

Ok, I'm talking more than just a registry.

I'm talking a very specific, program, where stud books are kept an breeding is established to maintain maximum allele frequency.

With it's native habitat in danger, responsible breeders should organize and found a program, using state of the art tracking and record keeping to maintain some of these species over the long term, not just cranking out whatever we can raise and sell.

Programs like this exist for many other aquatic species, ACA has their C.A.R.E.S. program for threatened Cichlids, there are similar groups for Amphibians, The small but diverse group of fishes, especially l series catfishes from the Rio Xingu shouldn't perish without a fight.

And with that, care must be taken to avoid genetic degradation.

Just my thoughts on this.

There is a conservation program that has been running for some years at Chester Zoo from donated Wild Caught per ban & unrelated F1 zebs I have also swapped F1 fry with other "breeders" over the years

Jo's Zebs wrote:There is a conservation program that has been running for some years at Chester Zoo from donated Wild Caught per ban & unrelated F1 zebs I have also swapped F1 fry with other "breeders" over the years

But this is a singular program run exclusively by the Zoo correct?

I was thinking of a more diverse group, a network of dedicated keepers that would use a database similar to what zoos use to track and manage specimens. A database registry of all sires and dams, date, locality data when possible, acquisition data etc.

Such a network could be joined by breeders in other countries across the world with singular intent, maintaining the genetic stability of the species. Not from just a singular Zoo, but across dozens, if not hundreds of breeders.

From reading the forums here, there are certainly many dedicated individuals that have a real passion for the L46 and other L series catfishes. It would be a shame not to take action where we can all participate.

Unfortunately, it takes organization. You can't save a species just because we have it in our tanks. Genetic drift and selection pressure causes degradation extremely rapidly, especially in fishes. Without an organized management plan to ensure genetic diversity and maximize allele frequency, the L46 will not survive.