Custom tattoos may kill fish

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-11-13 11:24

Custom tattooed fish may be big sellers at markets, but an animal expert say it is a cruel and potentially lethal practice.

In Laitai Flower and Fish Market near the Lufthansa Center in Beijing, four of over 20 fish stores sell marine ornamental fish that are tattooed using laser guns with beautiful images in order to make them more attractive to customers.

"Many people just love these kind of fish, it gives them a unique visual impression," said Li Jing, the owner of a tattooed fish store at the market.

Li said the price of these fish ranges from 50-100 yuan. Some customers are willing to pay an additional 100 yuan to have Chinese characters tattooed on to the fish. The most popular characters are "zhaocai" (attracting fortune) and "fu" (blessing).

"The color of tattooed fish won't fade away, and the fish can be cared for as easy as regular fishes," Li said.

But Ye Zhenjiang, a professor from the Ocean University of China, said the practice would damage a fish's mackerel scale, which is its protective layer.

"Although I haven't done any research on the impact of the laser on mackerel scale, it is obvious that the mackerel scale may be infected or even destroyed under the exposure of laser," Ye said.

"The mackerel scale is derivatives of a fish's skin which protects them. It may even cause death among fish which have thin mackerel scale."

A specialist in aquatic animal study surnamed Xu, from the Beijing Fisheries Research Institute, said: "We have no specific regulations to prevent fish from being tattooed."

An official surnamed Bai from the Beijing Fishery Surveillance and Administration Bureau, said there is no study showing that the laser threatened a fish's health.

He said a regulation on small animal protection, to be passed in the near future, doesn't include regular aquatic animals. He said the institution is only responsible for aquatic animals that are on the verge of extinction.

Li said tattooed fish are mainly from south China's Guangdong province because Beijing did not have the laser technology to tattoo a fish.

"It's too brutal to tattoo pictures or characters on fishes, even if it makes them more beautiful," a tropical fish buyer surnamed Chen told METRO yesterday.

"I would never buy fish like that, I prefer them with natural beauty," Chen said.