Opinions on feeding fish.

[BioDiver]

Good question and good answers.

Fish are opportunistic feeders.  If there are divers feeding fish or another source of 'free food' available the fish are going to go for it.  I am sure that as soon as the divers are gone the fish revert back to their natural way of feeding.  The feeding drive is instinctual to them and divers feeding fish once in a while is not going to harm them long term.

However...  I do think that feeding fish 'natural' food is not really a great idea.  LKunze touched on this about seeing less crayfish in some of the Crosby pits.  What we (divers) are doing is effecting the most delicate level of the food chain by feeding fish these smaller prey organisms.  There is a reason the fish have to work hard to naturally catch a crayfish or why sunfish can no longer eat a snail that has grown too large.  It is natures way of keeping things balanced and divers are offsetting this balance by breaking snails and clams and by digging crayfish out of their hiding places.

Not to mention the fact that many mussel species are on the verge of becoming endangered in Minnesota.  I think the DNR would have a bigger problem with us breaking open and killing all of these Mollusca than simply feeding some fish when we dive.

I like the ideas of bringing things with you such as cut up worms, cut up bait (minnows) you can buy at bait shops, I don't even think corn is a problem.  Many fish eat seeds and other vegetative matterial and they eat much harder things than corn shells and they would have no problem passing such things.

Like anything else moderation is key.  Feeding fish every now and then is not a problem, feeding fish a bunch of food every time you dive is probably not the best approach.  Enjoy our fish in their natural state, you will be amazed at the things you will see them do to find and catch their own food.