Ornamental fish production is among the leading cash crops of the Unit
ed States of America aquaculture economy, and retail value of the fish
trade is worth approximately US$1,000 million. However, few studies e
xist to document this trade. Using import and export documents we repo
rt trends in total values for the U.S. trade in ornamental fish, Also,
we determined the number and value of the most commonly imported orna
mental fish. In 1992, approximately 201 million fish valued at $44.7 m
illion were imported into the U.S. The port of Los Angeles handled 39%
of all trade activity, Miami 22%, New York 16%, Tampa 6%, and Honolul
u 6%. Freshwater fish accounted for approximately 96% of the total vol
ume and 80% of the value of the imports. Most freshwater ornamental fi
sh were farm-raised and imported from Southeast Asia. Most U.S. export
s of ornamental fish were cultured in the state of Florida. Although s
altwater fish had a high market value (20% of the declared value of th
e imports), the volume of these fish was only 4%. Most imported and ex
ported saltwater ornamental fish were collected from the wild. Of the
1,539 species declared as ornamental fish, 32 species dominated the tr
ade. These were all of freshwater origin. The guppy Poecilia reticulat
a and neon tetra Paracheirodon innesi were the most popular ornamental
fish kept in U.S. households. The average prices paid for imported or
namental freshwater fish were 35 cents for egg layers and 22 cents for
live bearers. The results of this study document the importance of th
e ornamental fish industry and identifies the most valuable species in
the trade for potential domestic culture and protection in the wild.