Every day, local fishermen visit Ernesto Rojas to sell him small, colorful fish plucked from rivers in the Colombian jungle that end up in aquariums around the world.

The septuagenarian has dedicated half a century to the ornamental fish business in Inirida, the capital of the eastern region of Guainia, which borders Venezuela and Brazil.

It is a thriving trade that critics see as cruel and harmful to nature, though environmentalists also recognize it brings benefits, such as encouraging habitat conservation and offering an alternative to harmful activities like illegal logging and mining.

Rojas keeps fish in ponds covered by nets to protect them from predatory birds before they are flown to Bogota for export to the United States, Asia and Europe.

Angelfish are seen in a fish tank.

Angelfish are seen in a fish tank.

Ornamental fish are seen in a fish tank before being packed for export.

Angelfish are seen in a fish tank before being packed for export in Inirida, Guainia Department.

Ernesto Rojas shows ornamental fish in a fish tank before being packed for export.

Pictus catfish (Pimelodus pictus) are seen in a fish tank.

Angelfish are seen in bags.

A Panda Uaru (Uaru fernandezyepezi) is seen in a fish tank.

Ornamental fish are seen in a fish tank.

Ornamental fish are seen in a fish tank before being packed.

He buys the Altum Angelfish (Pterophyllum altum) -- which is only found in the region and is prized by collectors for its long fins and striking vertical stripes -- for the equivalent of $2 each.

Once in the United States, they can sell for $70 or even more. “So much beauty packed into such a small body,” Rojas said as he examined his next shipment containing hundreds of angelfish. Around him fish swam in circles in plastic bags. His assistants enriched the water inside with oxygen from a cylinder in preparation for the flight of just over an hour to the capital.

A silver dollar (Metynnis argenteus) is seen in a fish tank before being packed.

Ornamental fish are seen in a fish tank before being packed.

An employee checks ornamental fish in bags before being packed for export in Inirida.

Angelfish are seen in a fish tank before being packed.

Ernesto Rojas packs ornamental fish for export in Inirida.

An employee carries ornamental fish in bags before being packed for export in Inirida.

Ornamental fish are seen in a bag before being packed.

A Geophagus ornamental fish is seen before being packed.

An employee catches ornamental fish in a pond before being packed.

Cardinal tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi) are seen in a fish tank before being packed for export in Bogota.—AFP photos

Sustainability concerns

In the local Indigenous language, Guainia means “Land of many waters.”

According to the National Aquaculture and Fisheries Authority, the region is home to 60 percent of the 521 species authorized for sale in Colombia, where the world’s biggest biodiversity conference got underway this week.

Around 526 tons of fish were exported in 2023, generating revenues of about six million dollars, the regulator said. Inirida is cut off from Colombia’s national road network and accessible only by plane or a long boat ride.

Its isolation makes revenues from ornamental fish a key pillar of the economy, Oscar Javier Parra, director of the local environmental authority, told AFP.

While South America’s booming aquarium trade brings much-needed income for thousands of people, sustainability is an issue, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).