LOTS of misconceptions regarding this issue!
In most cases, being wild does not make a fish better looking or healthier, the conditioning afforded to them in the wild makes the difference. Most fish never get care approaching that which they enjoy in the wild. Certainly food is more plentiful, but water quality and space issues are limited. Also, exposure to sunlight in the wild makes a big difference. Indiscriminant breeding of captive fish doesn't benefit from strict natural selection either, and weak bloodlines often result.
Regarding the collection of wild fish and corals, while we certainly should be careful how we do it, we MUST continue the practice in an effort to make protection of wild habitats an economically sensible option. Sustainable collecting is a key source of income to many people in the Amazon basin, etc. Eliminating that would lead them to find other sources of income, usually resulting in the physical exploitation of what used to be protected habitat.
Specifically regarding corals, the same is true, but what someone already said must be reinforced: collection of corals for the aquarium trade causes almost no damage at all when done correctly at the same time the concrete industry is totally wrecking ecosystems on the reef.
In most cases, being wild does not make a fish better looking or healthier, the conditioning afforded to them in the wild makes the difference. Most fish never get care approaching that which they enjoy in the wild. Certainly food is more plentiful, but water quality and space issues are limited. Also, exposure to sunlight in the wild makes a big difference. Indiscriminant breeding of captive fish doesn't benefit from strict natural selection either, and weak bloodlines often result.
Regarding the collection of wild fish and corals, while we certainly should be careful how we do it, we MUST continue the practice in an effort to make protection of wild habitats an economically sensible option. Sustainable collecting is a key source of income to many people in the Amazon basin, etc. Eliminating that would lead them to find other sources of income, usually resulting in the physical exploitation of what used to be protected habitat.
Specifically regarding corals, the same is true, but what someone already said must be reinforced: collection of corals for the aquarium trade causes almost no damage at all when done correctly at the same time the concrete industry is totally wrecking ecosystems on the reef.
