Dispelling Some Myths about Hatcheries

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Contributing to the controversies that have surrounded fish hatcheries in recent years are a number of misconceptions or myths about hatcheries and their effects on natural populations. These myths impede productive dialogue among those with differing views about hatcheries. Most of the myths include a measure of truth, which makes it difficult to recognize the elements that are not true. Consideration of these myths leads to the following conclusions: (1) Hatcheries are intrinsically neither good nor bad—their value can be determined only in the context of clearly defined goals; (2) genetic changes in cultured populations can be reduced but not eliminated entirely; (3) empirical evidence exists of many adverse effects of hatcheries, but some risks have been overstated; and (4) monitoring and evaluation programs are important but should not be used as a substitute for developing risk-averse hatchery programs in the first place. A key step in resolving some of the controversies will be moving towa...

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: