I agree that your thoughts have merit and are consistent with the evidence that you cited. The most plausible explanation for the difference in aggression is adaptation to respective environments (which includes the susceptibility of prey ... a consequence of environment).
I consider aggression to be the most important trait that an LMB can have. In a trophy pond, there can't be a lot of LMB and so being able to catch the limited number that are present on artificial lures is important in terms of the quality of fishing. I just wanted to add, that in many cases, adding the Florida genes won't necessarily produce larger fish. It depends on competition (how low the number of LMB is) and forage supply. If they are getting sufficient forage per individual to grow the Florida LMB past the limitations of the Northern ... then they will make a difference. I used to want a pond with of F1 females but that is changing. I think I would be perfectly happy with LMB that top out in the 7 to 9 pound range and are easier to catch. This modest ultimate weight allows for more individuals/acre improving quality of fishing. At this ultimate weight, there is little if any advantage to the Florida genes so I will probably forgo them altogether.
