but does anyone else find that contaminants are really becoming rare these days?
of I can inlude "for the last 10 years at least" with "these days", I so agree with you 100% on this........
great discussion btw.
I can follow Shane's point though, even if we skip the contaminants.
browsing a store, especially one that isn't too shy to stock rares can lead to surprise aquisitions and even a new succesful fish in the tank or hobby
a few examples of my own:
Dutch store in my area (about 20 miles from here). I was on my way from Marc and decided to make a bit of a roundaboutr and visit a store I hadn't seen in over a decade.
some of the fish weren't that good, most were and to my surprise over half of their "Platydoras costatus" turned out to be Orinocodoras eigenmanni! now I got a friend who had 3 but was looking for more anbd we couldn't find em anywhere.
I brought home a group for him.
file this under contaminants ;)
another example:
I drove to a small village near Frankfurt (4 hour 1 way drive, don't ask about the petrol....) to pick up Synodontis brichardi and especially Raiamas christyi. I entered a store that for me is nothing less than Tuth Ank Amuns tomb.......
picked up Labeo variegatus and Gobiocichla wonderi as well, spotted Amphilius (!) in his showtank and an old Garra congoensis and have been pestering the guy who runs the show of importing those 2 species, he's working on it.
these weren't contaminants, but I never expected to see those fish.
I could easily have spend 700 euro's on fish in there and I would have if I had a fish room........
will be back there.
I could never have that experience from online shopping live fish.
I do got some very bad experiences there.....expensive too. ordering 7 Bathybates to have them arriving with white spot and bacterial infections that no way ever could have developed in the 1 night journey and the owner giving me the finger after I asked for a ferund (5 out of 7 died within 24 hours, 400 euro's down the hatch).
needless to say I hung him out to dry on every forum I could find, but it's not helping with the online shopping world
this was a LARGE name a very well known shop mind, not some obscure con from nowhere.
I've heard many stories since, mostly from his store, but not always.
so if online shopping is the way, then quite a number of these shops including the more famous ones need to clean up their act pronto.
and hate to say it, but when it comes to arranging imports, be it through a shop or a joined up agreement from a bunch of hobbyists, but Africa is still one big money-pit where genuine honest traders are rare as hens teeth and the majority just take your money and make a runner.
if there's any place that really needs a dose of "getting in the 21st century" it is the online shopping world of anything related to Africa.
it'll take hard work and a lot of genuine acts not just intentions to have them get rid of that image.
