The Asian Arowana, Scleropages formosus, is often regarded as the king of all aquarium fish around the world, and with good reason. With their impressive size, coloration, and demeanor, it is no wonder that these fish garner the attention, prices, and respect that they do. 

Unfortunately, Asian Arowanas are listed as Endangered by the IUCN, and are listed on Appendix I of CITES. There are a number of contributors to this status, with the leader being habitat loss. The Endangered Species Act, enacted in 1973, currently makes it illegal for fishkeepers in the United States to own Asian Arowanas. 

Asian Arowanas are currently being bred en masse on several farms in Asia, and are legal to keep in nearly every country around the world - except for the United States. These Asian farms are CITES-approved, and all fish sold are, at a minimum, second-generation captive bred fish. In addition, each fish comes with a certificate of authenticity, a birth certificate, and a microchip for identification purposes. These three indicators are used to ensure that there is no confusion between CITES-approved, legal animals and their illegal counterparts. 

Currently, the United States is the only country in the world with a major aquarium hobby that does not allow for the keeping of the Asian Arowana. With an estimated over 7 MILLION homes in the US having aquariums, the introduction of legal Asian Arowanas to the American trade would have a massive social and economic impact. These fish are often priced in the thousands of dollars, with many going for five-figure sums. If these fish could be successfully bred in the United States, the economic boom in the fishkeeping hobby would be massive. 

In short, this petition is proposing that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services works to allow CITES-approved, captive-bred, LEGAL Asian Arowanas into the country. There is no harm to wild arowana populations from this, and the results would be extreme for the American fishkeeping hobby.