Re: NANFA-L-- Re: Re: NANFA-L-- Old story, new twist? Old twist

dlmcneely-in-lunet.edu
Fri, 19 May 2006 13:05:51 -0500

See response below

David L. McNeely, Ph.D., Professor of Biology
Langston University; P.O. Box 1500
Langston, OK 73050; email: dlmcneely-in-lunet.edu
telephone: (405) 466-6025; fax: 405) 466-3307
home page http://www.lunet.edu/mcneely/index.htm

"Where are we going?" "I don't know, are we there yet?"

----- Original Message -----
From: Moontanman-in-aol.com
Date: Friday, May 19, 2006 11:35 am
Subject: Re: NANFA-L-- Re: Re: NANFA-L-- Old story, new twist? Old
twist new story. Pl...
> In a message dated 5/19/2006 12:08:59 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
> bockhouse1-in-verizon.net writes:
>
> Bringing fish from one watershed to another is a big gamble, and
> often works
> out badly, whether the fish is endangered or common. If a species
> is foreign
> to a watershed, then the potential for harm to that watershed is
> real. The
> fact that it has been done in the past is no justification for
> doing it in the
> future.
>
>
>
>
> Show me some data were a fish was released on purpose by
> knowledgeable
> people where it turned out badly or where it turned out good or
> where it had any
> effect-in-all.

Carp in NA - well known proliferation. Peacock bass in Lake
Nicaraugua - displacing native predators and altering entire food
web. Brook trout throughout the West, putting stunted fish in place
of native trouts. Rainbow trout in the range of cutthroat trout
(whirling disease carriers). Largemouth bass in S. Africa -
displacing native predators and endangering native forage fish.
Channel catfish in the Colorado R - creating a competitor for native
suckers and a dangerous prey for native pikeminnows (the spines lodge
in the mouth and pharynx, killing the pikeminnow). Mosquitofish in
many parts of the world including Clear Lake, CA (they haven't been
accidental everywhere they've gone) where they prey on and displace
native fishes. Smallmouth bass in the native range of Guadalupe bass
(Texas Colorado and Guadalupe Rivers) where the native bass now
consists of a genetically introgressed population. Trout in Peru,
Chile, Bolivia where they upset native food webs including altering
plankon communities. Trout and salmon in Crater Lake, Ore -- formerly
fishless, now with populations of dwarves that have altered the
plankton community in unknowable ways. In this case, the fish are
planktivores that would never take a hook, though they were put there
to provide a fishable population!

All resulted in undesirable consequences for the native fauna. Should
I provide more?

Dave McNeely
>
>
> Michael Hissom
> aurea mediocritas
> /------------------------------------------------------------------
> -----
> / This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes
> / Association (NANFA). Comments made on this list do not necessarily
> / reflect the beliefs or goals of NANFA. For more information
> about NANFA,
> / visit http://www.nanfa.org Please make sure all posts to nanfa-l
are
> / consistent with the guidelines as per
> / http://www.nanfa.org/guidelines.shtml To subscribe, unsubscribe,
> or get
> / help, visit the NANFA email list home page and archive at
> / http://www.nanfa.org/email.shtml
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------
/ This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes
/ Association (NANFA). Comments made on this list do not necessarily
/ reflect the beliefs or goals of NANFA. For more information about NANFA,
/ visit http://www.nanfa.org Please make sure all posts to nanfa-l are
/ consistent with the guidelines as per
/ http://www.nanfa.org/guidelines.shtml To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get
/ help, visit the NANFA email list home page and archive at
/ http://www.nanfa.org/email.shtml