Sri Lanka is a tropical island located near the equator and surrounded by the Indian Ocean. Nature's gifted aquatic species, particularly ornamental fish, reef fish, invertebrates, live corals and aquatic plants, are of considerable importance to the Sri Lankan economy. Over the past few decades, the marine ornaments industry has become more popular and seen as a foreign revenue generating sector in Sri Lanka. Exports of marine ornamental fish increased significantly by 22.7% in 2016 compared to previous years and contribute to the continued share of the Sri Lankan economy. This industry has a high potential for expansion due to the abundant availability of natural resources. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay Marine fish and invertebrates are collected from the waters around the island by professional divers and exported around the world. The main dive sites for collecting include Kalpitiya, Ambalangoda, Hikkaduwa, Bentota, Tangalle, Weligama and Trincomalee. The main buyers are the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, the European Union and Middle Eastern countries. The annual growth of the marine ornamental fish industry is 0.93% and the sector has identified major projects aimed at increasing profit margin by breeding high-value ornamental fish, including exciting new species and rare varieties endemic to tropical islands. The marine ornamental aquarium is made up of more colorful and striking fish. species of fish, invertebrates, corals and aquatic plants. Ornamental marine fish species with high export demand include red sea fish, diamond goby, diesel, scissor-tailed clownfish, scorpion blenny, red coral perch, wrasse eight lines, the fighting goby, the white sand goby, the Koran. angel, royal angelfish, bicolor blenny, Elvis damsel fish, tiger goby, three-spot damsel, blue ring with high export demand. Marine ornamental fish species banned for export include blue and yellow grouper, two-spined angelfish, dotted butterflyfish. , Lion fish, saddled butterfly fish, masked banner fish. Marine invertebrates include Hippolis matha, red fire shrimp, dancing shrimp, green carpet anemone, purple starfish, hinge shrimp, flower sea urchin, purple tube anemone, corn rose bulb anemone, spotted trapezoid crab, sponge fragile yellow, orange line sea slug. Corals found in the marine are polyps, zoas, soft corals, LPS corals, clams and mushrooms. By introducing new technologies into the water management system and improving the understanding of nutrition and disease management, development has supported this sector as a global industry. This industry has become commercialized and around 50 companies export more than 1,000 varieties of live ornamental fish to 40 countries around the world, accounting for 0.74% of the global ornamental fish demand. More than 60 years of business experience endowed by some private companies including Lumbini Aquarium, Aquamarines International, etc. Improved varieties of seahorses are exported to the UK and European markets with great success and generate high export value. The Animal Quarantine Department issues a certificate for each shipment to ensure that the exported fish are healthy. Ornamental fish breeding is today.