Raising marine ornamentals is difficult, the degree to which depends on the species in question.

Species Not Cultured
About 85 percent of the marine ornamental fish and shrimp species traded worldwide have not been raised because of their complicated rearing requirements. Such species are too difficult to spawn and/or have very primitive larvae that are too difficult to raise. A common problem has been not being able to provide the right size, quality and/or quantity of acceptable food organisms for the larvae at first feeding. Butteflyfishes, hawkfishes, coral perches, tangs and surgeonfishes, and most wrasses and many marine angelfishes have never been raised in captivity.

Species Cultured Experimentally
Just over 120 species can be raised on an experimental basis in limited numbers. Further biological, technical and economic problems still need to be worked out to achieve large and consistent commercial production. Experimental rearing methods vary from species to species and require experience, dedication and financial commitment to develop. Some marine angelfishes, blennies, boxfishes, damselfishes, drums, dragonets, gobies, rabbitfishes, and puffers have been cultured in limited numbers.

Species Cultured Commercially
The biological and technical culture problems for about 50 marine ornamental species have been worked out. Economics now dictates whether mass production at a profitable level is feasible. A common problem is that the costs of producing certain species in large numbers are too high to compete with pricing of their wild-caught counterparts. Clownfishes, dottybacks, sea horses and few goby and cleaner shrimp species are presently produced commercially. The royal gramma, black-cap basslet, marine beta and banggai cardinal are examples of species that could be produced at a profitable level if the costs associated with producing them in large numbers was lower.