Re: hybrid fish

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

 Lazarus Miskowski said, in part:

> The ethics of hybrid fish are very interesting, I
> think.

Ain't it the truth?
> 
> It seems that very many of the fish in the hobby are
> man-made strains (whether it be color, finnage, etc.).

Otherwise, goldfish would not be gold, just drab carp.  Then again,
some of the things done to carp, oi veh!

>  No one gets terribly upset about this.

Some folks go positively ballistic -- about parrot fish, rainbows,
African cichlids, Discus, etc.


>  But at the
> same time, people get worked up about parrot fish, and
> now this Flower fish.
> 
> I wonder if the same arguments were made against
> developing strains of dogs.

Or plants, too.

Indeed they are still made, both for and against.  For example,
breeding for pointy heads can lead to too little room for the orbits
and other problmes.  Hip Dysplasia, which is more common in some
species than others, is probably a result, in some breeds, of
hybridization more than (jsut) natural evolution.

Guppies used to be the hardiest fish you could buy.  Many of the
strains today, although colorful, seem to be nearly allergic to
everything inlcuding water.

> 1. Does the new fish "suffer" anymore than any other
> fish in an aquarium?
> 
> 2. Is the new fish sterile?
> 
> 3. Does the fish undergo procedure or chemical
> treatment in order to obtain its appearance?

Good questions.
> 
> What other questions can be added?

Are they easily or often mixed into the market for pure breeds and
mispresented?

Is anyone hybridizing for behavior, health, other things besides
visuals?

Scott H.

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