Thanks for the elucidation, Andy, & apologies to the pet trade overall, altho every venue has its ‘bad apples’; just as not all MDs r altruistic/in the field to heal/protect/educate their patient base, many folks enter a field because they need to ($$… modest or not, for some, it’s the difference between feeding the fam/themselves or not).
It’s a horrifying tragedy, that folks w/a streak of heartlessness, even a dash of sadism, slip into the mix.
Another pet person i know who works in retail shared some horror stories—too heinous to repeat—attributable to Petsmart. She learned of the purported atrocities via employees of that company—certain unspeakable ‘solutions’ for potential pets deemed ‘expired’ or unviable for whatever reason
The ‘hitchhiking’ phenomenon is as old as time, & of course i comprehend the ‘kindly’ inclinations of folks who think it’s ok to release aquatic dwellers into water systems. They’re acting from the heart without educating themselves about possible dire consequences.
Since u r very knowledgeable/aware of this ‘species transfer’ process, i’m sure u know about the Lionfish debacle, which, imo, is tragic not just for the systems decimated by the exotic beauties, but for THE exotic beauties themselves
I ‘get’ the drive/necessity to cull these fish, but the brutality of it crushes me—most commonly (from what i’ve read), ‘spearing’
And adding insult to injury, often the ‘controlling agents’ (humans) CELEBRATE the plunder. Yep, Life on Earth is tough!!!!!
Starlings—one of my favourite feathered friends—is much maligned where i live in Canada—thankfully, NOT to the extent of being exterminated, but viewed as concerning competition to native species. Starlings r fascinating—brilliant creatures, imo—super entertaining. They’re regulars on our balcony, & we welcome them; they r stowaways from Europe, so i understand.
Although, of course, there’s a percentage of stewards who oversee wildlife populations & humanely monitor the ‘balance’ factor, HUMANS r significant contributors to A LOT of what goes awry in Nature. I could really get into a misanthropic rant here, but will refrain!!!
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Please advise. TY
You seem to forget that fishing comes in all kinds of means. What's the difference between spear fishing for snappers or groupers that you see for sale in your local seafood market vs spear fishing for lionfish? All of these species are now table fare so at least they are going to good use. It's much more dangerous to the fisherman to hook and line or seine net lionfish so spearing them is the next best option. Would you not eat a piece of fish if you knew it was caught with a spear? Maybe you'd prefer they be caught in a big seine net? Maybe on a fishing lure? Maybe from a long liner operation? To most people, the answer is " Of course we'd eat it no matter how it was caught." So once again, it's the kind hearted people who think that since they are already there that they should stay there, they are the same people who are advocating to destroying the natural world as it was intended, whether they realize it or not. 
