Originally posted by GW:
I don't mean any disrespect to those who have stocked Gambusia, but I feel it's important to point out some possible negative effects.
No offense taken GW.
I stocked gams with my eyes wide open. In my area, gams are ubiquitous. Every stream, pond, lake, and mudpuddle has gams. Because they are live bearers, they are among the easiest fish for birds to transport. Even if I had never stocked them, my pond was guaranteed to have them sooner or later.
Over the millenia, native species that share habitat with gams have fully adapted to them. Many fish in fact rely on them for forage. If my local frogs avoided them when choosing a site to lay their eggs, I bet they would have to hop for 300 miles!
I may be wrong, but I don't think that article is aimed at areas in which gams are native and plentiful. I can see where they could upset species that are not adapted to them. IIRC, they are even illegal in some states, and rightfully so.
