jps wrote: " Each fish will gain similarly with small variation if the weights of food they consumed are the same."
That's a massive assumption.
No. It's true. There is plenty out there on conversion of foods. I consider a R^2 greater than .90 small variation.
Consider a 12.65" LMB. Its RW can range from 70 to 180. Another way of saying the same thing? The weight at that length can range from 0.70 lbs to 1.8 lbs. So you can't predict length from a weight without high variation. The R^2 of length-weight relationships is much lower than the energetics relationships of consumption and gain.
It isn't what we don't know that gives us trouble, it's what we know that ain't so - Will Rogers
