Recently a news report from the U.K. was circling around social media, detailing how a man sent his wife and son on vacation while he installed a massive aquarium in their home. Since the enormous tank would cripple their existing home, Martin Lakin had to demolish the house and build it around the fish tank. The price for the tank alone was 50,000 pounds, which equates to 77,372 dollars. The report went on to say that over 100,000 pounds (154,000 U.S. dollars) worth of coral was added to the tank. When asked what his goals with the aquarium upgrade were, Lakin commented, “I wanted a tank large enough for my 15 year old son to swim in.” Public vs. Private:
Obviously Lankin has some money, and he invested quite a lot of it into computer and control systems for the entire tank, including an automated sun-roof. While Lankin’s wife Kay resisted the idea of an even larger aquarium, a close friend of Martin’s revealed the current monster aquarium is just a temporary holding tank until he builds his ginormous dream tank. Often on reef blogs or magazines we see a massive tank posted, the envy of all aquarists. Here in the U.S., it’s not uncommon to hear oohing and awing over Bill Wahn’s massive 20,000 gallon plus sized tank. While these tanks are marvels of aquatic engineering (especially Wahn’s which he built himself) one must ask, is it going too far? I’ve seen the argument on aquarium forums that massive private aquariums pale in comparison to public aquariums. While this may be true, public aquariums are open to the public, and educational programs offered through these facilities help open people’s eyes to the wonders of oceanic ecosystems. They reach millions, and many public aquariums have active conservation programs which protect wild reefs. Those with massive private aquariums are doing so for their own personal enjoyment, and it’s arguable if their giving anything back to protect wild ecosystems. With reefs quickly disappearing and the live animal trade getting less than stellar feedback from conservation outlets, perhaps aquarists should take environmental responsibility into account when building monster systems, or deciding on what size tank to set up. Resources:
Massive private aquariums don’t just consume a lot of corals, fish and other marine wildlife. They take an abundant amount of electricity, manpower and equipment to build, move and put in place.… More:
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