Re: NANFA-L-- Final 2005 Water garden Sunfish tally

dlmcneely-in-lunet.edu
Tue, 01 Nov 2005 16:51:51 -0600

George, you should be proud that you were able to sufficiently
replicate natural conditions in your water garden so that your native
sunfish were healthy enough to spawn. Most people with water gardens
do not do that well. Be proud!

Most people who do successfully raise native fish in captivity supply
other fish heads with their excess to stock their aquaria and ponds.
No one is jumping on you, just hoping to educate folks so that they
will know better.

So far as "conservation agencies" stocking captive reared fish: (1)
they are supposed to have all kinds of safeguards in place to prevent
introducing pathogens. Of course, their efforts are what introduced
whirling disease to salmonid populations in the western U.S. (2) it is
these very agencies that have been responsible for introduction of a
good many non-native populations and for genetic amalgamation of native
fishes since they've moved stock from drainage to drainage all around
the world.

We just do better when we keep our captive populations captive.

But again, you should feel proud for your success-in-raising fish. No,
a bait shop isn't the right approach, because the fish just end up back
in some river, more likely than not a different drainage from where
they originated. But maybe a friend wants a few for her backyard pond,
another friend wants some for his tank, and the guy who runs the
aquarium shop down the street wants some to sell -- assuming he has a
license to hold and sell native fish.

Dave

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: George W Corben <gwcorben-in-juno.com>
Date: Tuesday, November 1, 2005 2:23 pm
Subject: Re: NANFA-L-- Final 2005 Water garden Sunfish tally
> I established my watergarden in early Aug. '04 and did not
> wantto stock it with goldfish or Koi, opting instead to keep fish
> that I was
> familiar with from my youth. No Bullheads though. My pond has just
> completed its first full season and I was feeling quite proud of
> the fact
> that I had Sunfish that successfully spawned in it. Feeling proud
> that is
> ,until I posted the notice of my results and immediately began
> receivingcriticism for returning fish to their stream of origin.
> I thought I was doing good by promulgating native fish but
> apparently not.. My breeding age Green sunfish are now gone from
> my pond
> so this wont happen again. I do have 4 1 3/4- 2" Greens in my aquarium
> that will spend the winter inside with me. Im not sure what their
> futureholds come Spring, maybe everyone
> thinks a bait shop might be a good idea.
>
> George
>
> On Tue, 1 Nov 2005 11:54:45 EST EELReprah-in-aol.com writes:
> > In a message dated 11/1/05 11:20:10 AM, dlmcneely-in-lunet.edu writes:
> >
> > << Sorry to belabor this. >>
> >
> > It is worth it to get the point across. In many localities it is
> > illegal to
> > use live minnows as bait fish unless from the same lake or
> stream.
> > For many of
> > the same reasons.
> >
> > Lee Harper
> > Media, PA
> >
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