A cold snap in Florida is threatening the state’s tropical fish supply. Many fish farmers are reporting significant losses due to freezing temperatures that have plagued the Sunshine State for the past week or so.

David Boozer, executive director of the Florida Tropical Fish Farms Association, said the fish become stressed when water temperatures reach about 62 degrees Fahrenheit. Some fish farmers have reported water temperatures in the 40s, he said.

“They’ve taken all the precautions they could take — covering ponds with greenhouse film, pumping well water into the ponds and bringing some fish into hatchery buildings — but you can only do so much,” Boozer said. “You’re just at the mercy of the weather.”

Mike Drawdy, owner of Imperial Tropics Inc., produces 50 varieties of fish on his 65-acre farm in Lakeland, Fla. Prior to the cold snap, Drawdy moved as many varieties as possible indoors. Still, he expects to lose about 70 percent of his stock.

“It’s the same number I’m hearing from a lot of the other producers, too,” he said. “It’s almost a total wipe out.”

Drawdy, whose family has been in the fish farming business for more than 30 years, said this is the worse cold spell the industry has experienced.

“The temps got down and stayed down, and that’s really why we’re seeing the heavy losses,” he said.

Florida is the number one domestic source for tropical fish in the U.S., according to Christopher Watts, a manager with Ekkwill Waterlife Resources, a fish distributor based in Ruskin, Fla. He expects the cold snap to affect the tropical fish supply for the next six months.

“When the supply is severely impacted, it’s going to affect everybody even up to the retail level,” he said.

According to Boozer, it will likely take weeks to determine the extent of the damage. <HOME>