Coral reef fish represent some of the most diverse and ecologically important vertebrate communities on Earth. They face multiple anthropogenic threats and are increasingly recognized as having welfare-relevant experiences.
Reef fish welfare considerations span both individual and ecosystem levels. Individual fish caught by cyanide suffer acute poisoning and are sold into the aquarium trade where high mortality continues. Fish populations disrupted by overfishing show altered social structures, reduced reproductive success, and behavioral changes consistent with chronic stress. The welfare of reef fish is inseparable from the health of their reef habitat — coral bleaching events remove the complex habitat structures that reef fish depend on for shelter, feeding, and reproduction, creating persistent welfare stress for fish that survive in degraded environments. Conservation and welfare arguments reinforce each other for reef fish: protecting healthy reefs protects the welfare conditions of reef-dependent fish.