On March 3-4, 2023, the first International Ornamental Fish Seminar (IOFS), co-organized by SHOU and the Ornamental Fish International (OFI), was held online. Well-known scholars from China, the UK, Australia, Singapore, Denmark, Indonesia, Panama, and other countries made thematic reports. The seminar also attracted nearly 100 attendees from Pakistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, etc. They discussed the major challenges faced by the ornamental fish industry and its development trends and technological innovation.

The seminar was presided over by OFI President Shane Willis, visiting professor at SHOU. Jiang Min, Vice President of SHOU, delivered an opening speech. In her speech, Vice President Jiang gave a brief introduction to the development history of SHOU: SHOU was formerly founded in 1912. In 1952, it was upgraded to Shanghai Fisheries Institute, the first undergraduate fisheries university in China. In 2017, it was elected among China’s “Double First-class” universities. In February 2022, it was elected into the second round of “Double First-class” universities. She emphatically introduced the 20-year construction process of the specialty of Aquarium Science and Technology, expressing her good wish that SHOU would cooperate with more scientific research institutions and international organizations around the world to jointly promote the coordinated development of the international ornamental fish industry.

Professor Shane Willis gave a lecture entitled “Current Status of the World Aquarium Industry and Impacts of COVID-19”, in which he talked about the huge impacts of COVID-19 on the world aquarium industry over the past three years, the consequent reduction in scientific and technological achievements as well as exchange and cooperation activities regarding ornamental fish, and the efforts made by the OFI to promote the standardization, diversification, and internationalization of the ornamental fish market.

Professor Chen Zaizhong’s Team at the College of Fisheries and Life Science of SHOU has been long engaged in research on the culture and quality control of ornamental fish. At the seminar, he described in detail the scientific research progress made in the fields of pigmentary colors and structural colors and explained the ongoing transition of the body colors of ornamental fish from wild-type mutations to biological breeding, with the focus on Astronotus ocellatus and Symphysodon discus. In the end, he called on scientific researchers and aquarium enthusiasts to work together to tackle key problems and establish a standard evaluation model for the body colors of ornamental fish, thereby more accurately revealing and more rationally utilizing the scientific and interesting inner laws in the colorful aquarium world.

Jonathan Poh, Secretary-General of the OFI from Singapore, made a wonderful report entitled “Sustainability in the Aquarium Industry”, in which he especially pointed out the considerable benefits generated by the aquarium industry for people living in poverty-stricken areas and emphasized the development potentials of the aquarium industry in different regions. He also suggested that low-cost breeding and regional resources advantages should be the prerequisites under which great importance is attached to the aquarium industry in poor countries, which plays an important role in promoting the development of the aquarium industry.

British scholar Ian Watson reviewed the current situation and research progress of the marine ornamental fish industry, discussed the problems faced by the industry, and talked about the development prospects of marine ornamental fish. Gareth barber from Australia described the application background of circulating water and its leading advantages in the aquarium industry in combination with different means of water quality change and control, which presented important enlightening significance for the in-depth and practical application of circulating water technologies in the ornamental fish industry. Mou Xidong, a researcher at the Pearl River Fisheries Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, started with the sex differentiation modes of existing Eustomias jimdraddocki, elaborated in detail the new means of “rapid kit detection of sex differentiation in Eustomias jimdraddocki”, and put forward many insightful views on the development status and future trend of the rapid determination of sex differentiation in ornamental fish based on detailed theoretical and practical research results. Combining the relevant data on the survival and development of Sesarma reticulatum and the results of academic research on their habitat conservation, Theo Williams from Indonesia cautioned against the possible negative impacts of the destruction of natural habitats on Sesarma reticulatum, and proposed the best practice for conserving natural habitats: “Making survival more multimodal beyond a stable system”. Taking the marine ornamental fish culture system with deep participation as an example, Till Deus from Panama showed the importance of mariculture in the R&D innovation of ornamental fish culture, and called on aquaculturists to actively pay attention to the application values and future prospects of marine ornamental fish culture. Nic Dos Santos from Australia introduced various forms of corals and their culture background, focusing on the key points about their asexual and sexual reproduction. He also analyzed trade problems on ornamental corals.

The online seminar attracted more than 100 scholars and practitioners of the ornamental fish industry at home and abroad. The keynote speakers, the host, and the attendees engaged in heated, highly academic discussions on “how to promote the development of the ornamental fish industry”, “existing problems with the ornamental fish industry and its future direction”, etc. In addition, Zhai Yufei, Yang Jia, and Ji Yu (all of them are master candidates) from the College of Fisheries and Life Science of SHOU and Shi Xiulan from Nanjing Agricultural University also made academic reports at the seminar, and introduced their latest research achievements on ornamental fish. They were given an “Award for Excellent Oral Presentation”.

The seminar was an important academic activity celebrating the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the specialty of Aquarium Science and Technology, a national first-class specialty. It received strong support from SHOU and all walks of life, and offered a platform that strengthened exchanges and interactions between researchers in the ornamental fish industry at home and abroad. In the principle of mutual learning between China and the West, the event would effectively promote the ornamental fish industry with Chinese aquaculture characteristics to go global, boosting the international transformation of China’s aquarium industry.