The Lone Star Legacy Bass are now available and are right at 2.25"-2.5". These are pure strain genetics, not hybrids.
It is my opinion that we should be stocking pure genetics wherever possible, especially in larger bodies of water where you manage for long-term results. Hybrids are "cool" in smaller systems in the short-term, but in the long-term? Once you allow hybridization of the genetics then you can't go back into the past and undo.
For those of you who encourage, recommend, or allow hybridization among the different largemouth bass subspecies, I wonder if you may not know what you are missing with pure genetics.
I would like to know of some real world examples where hybridization between species OR subspecies has produced quality and desired specimens after several generations of breeding.
In the gardening world you can get hybrid tomato plants that are super strong, disease resistant, productive, etc, but you are NOT supposed to use the seeds from these plants. If you do plant seeds from hybrid tomato plants then who knows what you will get, but it will likely be very different (in a negative way) than the original F1 generation cross.
You can find countless other examples in the plant and animal world of degradation after the F1 generation cross. So why would largemouth bass genetics be any different? What proof of outbreeding depression might you be looking for? Since fish health, growth rate, behavior, etc, are influenced by many different factors in play at the same time, it is difficult to pinpoint outbreeding depression as a significant reason for poorly-performing fish.
