Glow-in-the-dark Glofish -- fishy idea?

http://www.maconareaonline.com/news.asp?id=4820

Glowing Fish to Be First Genetically Changed Pet

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A little tropical fish that glows fluorescent red will be the first genetically engineered pet, a Texas-based company said on Friday.... They are very bright under any type of light," Blake said. "Under ultraviolet light in a dark room they will appear to be glowing in the dark."

Why do I think this is a bad idea?

I think they are cool. When I used to have an aquarium I would always try to have some of the types of fish that naturally had spots that glowed. I also liked the glass fish, they are like a living visible-fish model.

Are they good to eat?! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

You have to wear sunglasses...

Neon tetras are cool. They are transluscent, and have a blue top and bottom, and a red stripe that goes pretty much from head to tail right around the middle of the fish. If you have a fluorescent tube in your aquarium hood, they really do light up nicely.
They aren't big (maybe 1" to 1.5" long, and probably 0.25" high), but they're really cool! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I don't have a fishtank at this moment, but I used to, and grew up with them too.

Bait for night fishing???

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/7397125.htm

California to ban GloFish?

"SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The nation's first genetically altered household pet -- a fish that glows in the dark -- is set to begin appearing in stores next month everywhere except perhaps California, the only state with a ban on lab-engineered species."

That's funny I catch Lightening and Thunder trout here in California and they are sellectively bread hence engineered. I doubt it was done in a lab so I am going to keep it quite. These Lightening trout taste great and how the other fishermen would hate me if I were to slip up with this one. Oh yeah Davis is out of office Hale Arny!

I'll second that one Whiskypapa!

I read the CNN report on the new fish, and it seems they only glow when exposed to blacklight or UV light. That probably wouldn't make them too useful for night fishing as bait, unless you could convince the fish to carry around a small UV flashlight, hehe. And as a food, you'd have to eat a few hundred of them to get full, so their food value seems low. Wait, a glow fish pizza! I gotta patent that idea.

So, if you did fill your fish tank with these UV sensitive fish, would they get cataracts from the constant bombardment of UV rays? Would they go blind and need corrective eye surgery? Would we care? I guess as long as they are still a tasty topping on a thick crust pizza, the point is moot. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinser2.gif

[ QUOTE ]
PhotonBoy said:
California to ban GloFish?
"SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The nation's first genetically altered household pet -- a fish that glows in the dark -- California, the only state with a ban on lab-engineered species."

[/ QUOTE ]
Glo-Fish are known to cause cancer in CA /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I'm thinking we need to give them drivers licenses. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Just wait till they get loose in NY's sewers. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif