The fish pictured above is a Loricariidae, or armored catfish. As a teen, I had several freshwater aquariums and this particular catfish was a common fixture in my tanks as a bottom feeder and window cleaner as it fed on the algae that would grow on the aquarium glass. But they were always just an inch or two long, a juvenile (as is often the case with many of the fish in the aquarium trade). Cute little guy, nosing around scrubbing the small porcelain hard hat diver resting on the gravel bottom. However, the beast above is no welcome visitor to the freshwater lakes and streams in southern Florida. It is another invasive species that the state is having to contend with. While the beautiful but voracious lionfish plays havoc with coral reef fish populations off the eastern Florida coast and into the Caribbean, the armored catfish, so named because of its tough scales and spiked fins, is damaging fresh waterways by devouring aquatic plant life which causes erosion of the local shoreline by as much as 10 feet. Full grown adults also lay their eggs in 18-inch deep, 4-inch wide holes along the shoreline which can pose a hazard to people walking along the water's edge.In South America, where the armored catfish is normally found, the balance of nature - the level of plant growth, the predators that feed on the catfish - all help to maintain a proper balance in the catfish population and whatever damage it inflicts on local aquatic plant life. But in southern Florida it is running amok as it already has for several years in Texas waterways.The armored catfish joins a long list of invasive species that include, in addition to the lionfish, the ravenous snakehead fish in the Northeast, freshwater zebra mussels in the Great Lakes, and the Caulerpa taxifolia seaweed in California, just to name a few. And as is often the case with these unintended invaders - sometimes the result of being castaway pets or sometimes brought in from distant waters by freighters carrying them or their eggs/spores in the bilgewater - eradicating them can prove to be difficult and costly. Estimates to correct shoreline erosion and set up various methods to deter the catfish have been as high as a million dollars.In describing the situation, contractor Chip Collins, owner of Lake Erosion Restoration, said, "One, it's a safety issue. Two, it's a curb-appeal issue.""If we do nothing, I think eventually we're going to end up with a sinkhole," said Suzanne Ury, president of the Royal Lakes Homeowners Association.It's always a difficult decision, deciding on how best to deal with an invasive species. Will we do more damage in trying to eliminate it, or should nature take its course and over time reach a new balance. It was mankind's clumsy handiwork that put it into a foreign ecosystem; do we have the ability to correct the situation or make things worse? Source: Florida Sun-Sentinel
Art, when it is properly displayed in a gallery setting, often beckons the viewer to contemplate and ponder, not just take a passing glance and turn the page. Paintings, photographs, and even video can reach their maximum visual effectiveness in a gallery. And this can be important if the image has something to say; if behind its initial visual impact there is a deeper emotional or visceral connection hoping to be made. For endangered animal species, art can prove to be a powerful champion.
To that end, the Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in association with the Nova Southeastern University's Oceanographic Center, will be presenting SHARK, an exhibition of paintings, drawings, photographs, sculptures, and videos of the fabled fish that elicits both fear and fascination for many people. The exhibit represents artists from around the world and was organized by Richard Ellis, renown painter of sharks of the world and accomplished author (The Book of Sharks, Tuna). Many of the images of sharks that I seek with video are based on my early impressions from many of Ellis' paintings.
“Sharks have long fascinated man; some ancient societies even revered them as gods. In my art, I pay homage to their graceful beauty,” said Ellis. “This exhibition delves into a variety of issues in an examination of the human impact on sharks. It explores the shark as a predator and its portrayal in culture, the importance of shark conservation, the biology of the myriad of shark species, and the thrill of shark encounters.”
The exhibition will display the range of attitudes mankind has had for sharks of the centuries - from John Singleton Copley's classic Watson and the Shark (ca. 1778), shown above, to a retrospective of the movie Jaws, to contemporary representations from artists including Guy Harvey, Richard Ellis, Rod and Valerie Taylor, David Doubilet, and more.
The Museum of Art also acknowledges the interactive, multimedia world we live in and will also be providing a SHARK mobile app to further engage the visitors, along with educational kiosks placed throughout the exhibit.
“SHARK is a stunning and timely exhibition about how the shark has entered the public imagination and how artists, over the decades, have portrayed one of the most fascinating, vulnerable, and misunderstood marine animals on the planet,” said Irvin Lippman, executive director of the Museum of Art.
While the SHARK art exhibit will be running from mid-May to January of next year, I don't expect everyone to jump on a plane bound for Florida and take a peek - unless you happen to be in the area. But it is important for all shark advocates to realize that there are many ways to influence and change people's perceptions about many things, say, the malevolent man-eating shark for one. Art is subtle, it plays with the subconscious but its impact can be profound, aiming deep for the soul, sometimes more so than hard facts or heated argument.
Beauty can soothe the savage beast - even when the beast is mankind and the beauty is the grace and elegance of the shark.
Source: Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale
Source: Florida Sportsman
