Tropical ornamental aquaculture is an important industry in the state of Florida. While the industry is an important economic sector in the state of Florida, escapement of non-native organisms has resulted in criticism that the ornamental aquaculture industry is essentially unregulated. This is not the case, aquaculture in Florida is regulated by multiple agencies with main authority residing within the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). The goal of the present study was to evaluate FDACS Best Management Practices (BMP) regarding non-native species.
Our specific objectives were to 1) evaluate the inspection process, 2) examine BMP compliance, 3) identify the critical control points for fish escapement, 4) analyze the stages of invasion and 5) determine the effectiveness of current aquaculture BMPs following evaluation of the above objectives. We conducted site visits with FDACS compliance inspectors and bird surveys on farms, sampled fish immediately adjacent to farms and sampled fish across the broader environment in west-central Florida.
Our findings suggest a coherent inspection process, strong compliance by producers and rapid correction of non-compliance issues. Escape in effluents is the dominant pathway of introduction; all other possible pathways were unimportant. Presence of a detention pond or absence of effluents is the most important factor increasing compliance. Native fish dominated the catch across the sampled landscape from adjacent to farms out into the larger, more natural aquatic systems. Despite the occurrence of some non-natives adjacent to facilities, the number and diversity of fish declined rapidly with distance from the farm such that non-native ornamentals were rare to non-existent in the broader landscape. Our results suggest the mandatory inspection process is fundamentally sound with a coherent regulatory structure that facilitates cooperation between FDACS and farm operators.