Many vs. Lots

In his blog, David crystal sparks doubt concerning the correct usage of many vs. lots or a lot. To avoid running into conclusions, I wrote myself a few examples using the same sentences or phrases but changing many for lots. To my surprise, I found that I inferred completely different things right away. To set an example, I wrote down "I have many fish" right besides "I have lots of fish". As I read the first one I had a mental image of an aquarium with a variety of different species of fish. In the later, I visualized a fisherman on a boat selling loads of salmon. In effect, I concluded that they are both correct in their own, but it drastically depends on the intentions of the words imprinted. They trigger specific reactions, and so therefore should be used as support for different intentions. One does not necessarily replace the other.