Mixing unknown bloodlines of fish

There have been several discussions in the past about diversifying bloodlines of breeding stock to improve the hardiness of a gene pool. Sometimes it is necessary to combine groups of fish to create a proper stocking of M/F ratio.

I'm in the process of trying to build a colony of a particular species of fish, and ran into a dilemma I never considered or encountered in the past. I have a tank raised group of fish with an unknown collection point. I have the opportunity to order some of these fish from one of our sponsors, but his stock comes from a defined collection point.

Is it ok to mix these groups if the offspring are labeled as tank raised? I realized that mixing two tank raised strains from different sources is potentially mixing different strains without knowing provenance. The males from each group look similar, but this doesn't guarantee they are from the same strain.

I know there is no easy answer to this question, just thought it was worth soliciting opinions before placing an order.

In a nutshell:

Unknown provenance x known provenance = Unknown provenance

That said, just because a vendor (or hobbyist) is selling something with an F# or location attached to it doesn't mean that the fish is of known provenance. Sadly, people make that stuff up every day...

Another thought: Many people over-value the benefit of "different lines" of fish in a breeding group... and underestimate the risk of including fish from a truly different source.

Matt

dogofwar said:

In a nutshell:

Unknown provenance x known provenance = Unknown provenance

That said, just because a vendor (or hobbyist) is selling something with an F# or location attached to it doesn't mean that the fish is of known provenance. Sadly, people make that stuff up every day...

Another thought: Many people over-value the benefit of "different lines" of fish in a breeding group... and underestimate the risk of including fish from a truly different source.

Matt

Click to expand...

So you're saying go for it?

Thanks for the insight, I know you have a lot of experience with fish from various locations. Just didn't want to try something if it wouldn't be kosher to sell the offspring. Always like to check with people that have more experience than me.

Thank you Michael for asking that question. good info.

Indeed, good question. I was pondering the same thing last week when I saw the opportunity to add to my group of Julies. I have some with no location name....and saw the same variety for sale that do have a location. In the end, I didn't end up getting any more but it did make me wonder what other folks have been doing...

Kind of vague, so hard to opine.

Where I come out is, lots of fish are tank raised to the X. I have had some great ones, I have had some "meh" ones. I find this species dependent. Far-from-the-tree yellow labs for example... no. My line bred tropheus... yes.

For me this comes down to 100% reputation of the seller and understanding where they sourced their fish (and where their source sourced their fish). If I didn't know the seller well, I'd ask. I feel like a good seller will take enough pride in their stock to feel flattered that you cared and brag up a storm about the provenance of the fish and why they feel good about them. If you get bad vibes from that process, don't do it.

edit: Since the "unknown" fish are already purchased... I think you can still go back, though. Again, it's like asking people questions about themselves... people love to talk about their fish, so see if you can get more background to get comfortable.