Tom Smith, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Endangered species cannot legally be sold, and most freshwater fish come from hatcheries, but saltwater species are a different story: 99 percent are pulled straight out of the wild, primarily from waters around Asian-Pacific reefs. Because of advances in technology, even an amateur aquarist can house the most complex marine environments in a tank-complete with living coral, mix-your-own seawa-ter, and all manner of ocean life, from angelfish to zooplankton. During the past two decades marine ornamentals have grown into a $200 million-a-year business, yet little research has been done on the effects of carting off pieces of the world's tropical reefs. To supply the market created by hobbyists, destructive collection practices have become routine in certain areas, causing population depletion and habitat damage. These methods include breaking corals and using lethal chemicals like sodium cyanide to stun and catch fish. Cyanide fishing has so devastated reefs in Southeast Asia that scientists fear they will no longer exist by 2020. Your local aquarium society can recommend dealers who avoid selling such unscrupulously snared specimens. Ask merchants where fish come from, how they were captured, and how long they have been held. Hawaiian and Caribbean species are better choices because they are hand-caught. On the horizon: a labeling program developed by the Marine Aquarium Council (www.aquarium.org), which represents the industry, hobbyists, conservationists, government agencies, and public aquariums. The group is working to create an environmentally sound market by promoting sustainable fishing and certifying safely harvested organisms so that customers will know their purchases aren't ravaging irreplaceable ecosystems.
Is DDT still manufactured in the United States and exported to other countries?
William Shannon, Kailua, Hawaii
Thankfully, the manufacture of DDT in this country is a relic of a
bygone era, as are the days when the pesticide was hailed as a cure-all
for virtually every type of insect problem. But that doesn't mean the stuff
is gone. Despite a ban in the United States in 1972 (and in the rest of
the industrialized world, as well), DDT is still produced in at least three
countries, including Mexico, and imported by more than a dozen others,
mainly to combat such insect-borne scourges as malaria-a major cause of
death in poorer nations. In fact, because it is cheap, effective, and less
acutely harmful to humans, DDT is regarded as the developing world's most
practical weapon against the disease. But it is also a dangerous, long-lasting
poison that lingers in soil, disperses widely through air, and accumulates
up the food chain. The once insouciant use of the pesticide in the United
States signed the death warrant for untold numbers of birds and undermined
the reproductive systems of countless more, such as bald eagles, which
were pushed close to extinction. Last September, in negotiations on the
planet's most hazardous persistent organic pollutants, 115 nations agreed
to ban DDT in all agricultural applications but allow its continued use
in insect control. That public health superseded environmental concerns
underscores the need to intensify efforts to implement less insidious alternatives.
Almost four decades after Rachel Carson sounded her clarion call about
the alarming power of this pesticide in Silent Spring, DDT is still very
much with us.
How can I become a wildlife rehabilitator?
Vickie Kay Palecki, Bent, New Mexico
Perhaps the best way to devel- op the skills needed to help wild creatures in distress is to volunteer with an established wildlife center or licensed rehabilitator. By getting hands-on experience, novices will not only learn how to care for compromised animals but also figure out whether they have what it takes to continue in this field. Wildlife rehabilitation requires more than concern for animal welfare. People in this line of work must have appropriate state and federal permits to handle nongame species. They often receive no payment for what they do. Indeed, these Good Samaritans often dig deep into their own pockets for food, medicine, cages, and other supplies. The work also requires a huge investment of time. Baby birds need to be fed every 15 minutes or so; healing an injured coyote could take three months. The National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (www. nwrawildlife.org; 320-259-4086) and the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (www.iwrc-online.org; 707-864-1761) offer classes for beginners and can provide information on answering the call of the wild.
