I had some funny talks with various state employees in Massachusetts about
what to stock in rivers. They invariably thought that what fishermen in
Massachusetts really wanted was Pacific salmon. So, they stocked coho in the
North River, south of Boston, several times, and expressed amazement that
these fish didn't "take". I'll never forget the look of disgust on the face
of an Environmental police officer when I said that's a bad idea, it's
introducing alien species. I might as well have pooped on his shoes. Other
flaks were more genteel. I haven't come across this in Alabama yet, but I
know I will. Oy gevalt!
--Bruce Stallsmith
Huntsville, AL "The Klezemer City"
>That is such a good point and one many people don't seem to realize. I
>went
>through the Fisheries Management program at Ohio State Univ. My 2 favorite
>classes were ichthyology and ecology. There were certainly conflicts in
>vision between true biology/ecology and fisheries management. The view of
>the fisheries program was, well, management-- how humans could "improve"
>things for fishing, recreation, etc. They kinda gave us facts, but not the
>ethics and not the whole picture. The illuminating classes were ones that
>taught things like ecosystem structure and species diversities and
>community
>ecology, but most kids didn't care about them, much less grasp their
>importance. In all fairness, the fisheries program was preparing kids for
>employment by state fish and wildlife agencies. So what it means is that
>these are a sizeable amount of people working for these agencies that have
>a
>specific view (or agency directive) on what is needed.
>
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