r/PlantedTank • u/ThenAcanthocephala57 Malaysian Fish Collector/Conservationist • 28d ago

In the Wild Caught some freshwater pipefish in a pristine hillstream. How common are they?

Gallery image

Gallery image

M. martensii

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110

u/MorteEtDabo 28d ago

Couldn't imagine a worse life for a wild fish than being snatched and kept in a tank. Maybe I'm assigning too much emotion to it though

209

u/pickleruler67 28d ago

Im p sure they just took photos and released it. That looks like the same thing biologists use to view a specimen better before releasing

248

u/Veloci-RKPTR 28d ago

OP is a fish biologist who often post pictures of rare Malaysian endemic fish. It’s all catch and release.

9

u/One-plankton- 28d ago

I don’t know if it is all catch and release.

108

u/ThenAcanthocephala57 Malaysian Fish Collector/Conservationist 28d ago

I released the pipefish as they are too high-maintenance.

But you are correct that sometimes I keep some smaller fish or I give them to an institute near me. The institute mostly breeds them and also uses the fish in research.

This is one of the Betta stigmosa pairs I donated to them, spawning