CMA my opinion. Lot of factors determine rate of expansion, food source, adequate habitat and reproductive ability probably lead the way. If one species takes over and depletes the food source, one of three things will happen. Growth will be stunted, fish will cannibalize one another or they'll relocate to areas with sufficient food source. Nature in other words will find a way and balance things out. In that sense I agree with the poster who questioned why man thinks he knows what's best for Mother Nature but the argument he's making supports not categorizing Flatheads as invasive. Actually just the opposite, let nature's balance figure it out.

Case in point, when northern pike were introduced into the Passaic, everyone thought they'd kill everything else. The Passaic today has the most diverse robust fishery it's had in 100 years. All you need to do is look at JD Tuna's posts. Guarantee those fish aren't eating bugs either. The Passaic is teeming with life. Perch, sunnies, blue gills, carp, bull heads, channels, eels, small mouths, large mouths, suckers, chubs etc.. Yet the state stocks 4 - 6 thousand pike a year. Eating machines. You think the pike Justin is catching aren't eating a significant amount of resident fish to attain those sizes. Yet the system is thriving. How is that any different than flatheads.

The people who fish and target flatheads appreciate the sport they provide. They might harvest a few but they release the majority because its a challenging fishery which occurs primarily during nocturnal hours and for the most part it's a trophy fishery. Calling the fishery invasive and asking anglers to keep fish they caught won't make a dent because they are very rarely a by-catch during the day and most people who fish for them don't kill them. If the goal is to control the biomass by harvesting more, open it up, run tournaments, get more anglers involved and more fish will be harvested. The way the state is going about it now has zero chance of working and is the most idiotic way of trying to control the population.

I also believe nature as always plays a hand. Flatheads like warmer water, skinny water or deep water with a lot of rubble and structure like downed trees. My experience is they prefer slow moving water like eddy's, scour holes and slow moving stretches. They hide out for the most part during the day and patrol and feed at night. When the water gets below 60, they become less active. 50 they become dormant. I don't believe Flatheads will travel much further up the Delaware beyond the Gap because of water temperatures and different habitat. There's no where near the population north of the Gap as there is in southern stretches. The biomass has been concentrated in the lower reaches of the Big D as well as the Schuylkill and Susquehanna. Will there be expansion.....yes. Will it be significant, personally I don't believe so.

Like I said earlier, Flatheads have had zero impact on the American Shad run. I challenge anyone to prove otherwise. I would challenge proof they have had a negative impact on any species at all. For all we know, like pike they may actually strengthen stocks by thinning the herd causing less competition for forage. In other words the weaker fish succumb to predation and the strong survive to perpetuate the stock. That's essentially how it works in the wild with everything. If it was habitat being destroyed by Flatheads or any other species, my opinion and reply would be different. But this is let Mother Nature do what she does best by allowing her to balance itself out.

Andy I know your worried about the Delaware leading to the D&R leading to your beloved Raritan and the effects Flatheads might have. The Schuylkill has 100 times more flatheads in it and a robust small mouth and musky fishery, is loaded with carp, eels and even brown trout in the upper reaches. Don't think the Raritan is going to succumb to the almighty Flathead so I wouldn't worry but if the state wants to do something preemptive, they're absolutely going about it the wrong way.

That's my final say on the matter. If you disagree, than we disagree. Either way like I said, Flatheads aren't going away anytime soon and titling them invasive is as useless as tits on a bull.