Specialist Breeder Program

I. Purpose

A. To encourage members of ECAAC to breed fish and share knowledge concerning the spawning and rearing of fish.
B. To recognize the achievements of ECAAC members concerning the breeding of fish.
C. To promote an interest in and make available a wider variety of fish.
D. To encourage more members to be active participants in society.

II. Lifetime Achievement Award

A. The program is made up of six levels of achievement. The levels and requirements are as follows

B. Certificates or Plaques will be awarded to breeders in the following categories:

Specialist — see species requirements list
Senior Specialist — see species requirements list
Master Specialist — see species requirements list
Grand Master — see species requirements list

In addition to the standard Breeding Awards Program (BAP), members who participate are automatically included in the Specialist Breeder Program (SBP). This program is designed to recognize members who have taken a special interest in a specific class of fish and have bred a large number of fish from that class. These members may be viewed as having expertise in that particular field of aquatic husbandry.

SBP Awards

Specialization Award — An aquarist must spawn 6 different members of one family of fish, (e.g. Cichlidae, Anabantidae, Callichthydae) or 6 different and distinct trade recognized colours and/or fin types, (e.g. Angelfish – Koi, Gold, Black, Blushing, Silver, and Clown), or six fish that spawn similarly, (e.g. bubble-nesters, mouth-brooders, cave-spawners, etc.).

1. Before an attempt at a specialization award, the ECAAC chair, or their appointee must approve it.

2. When obtaining a Specialization Award for a similar spawning method, at least two families must be represented.

3. The participant is responsible for maintaining records to show the six species spawned for a Specialization Award.

SBP Rules and Class Requirements

The rules for participation are the same as for the standard BAP with the following exceptions;

1. Each qualifying spawn submitted generates 1 point towards that class regardless of difficulty.
2. Species may only be counted once (e.g. White Calvus and Black Calvus are only counted as one spawning, Tiger Barbs and Green Tiger Barbs as one spawning.)
3. SPB Class Requirements:
   a. Each column displays the number of species required to spawn to achieve that level.