Nasty snakehead fish allegedly spotted at Burnaby's Central Park (Canada) lagoon
26 replies, posted
[img]http://www.vancouversun.com/life/6626334.bin[/img]
[quote]An anonymous person out for a stroll on Mother's Day allegedly saw a snakehead fish in the lagoon of Burnaby's Central Park and posted it online.
Although no Burnaby officials have confirmed the reported sighting, the snakehead has a nasty reputation as having a voracious appetite and sharp teeth, able to bite fish such as carp and koi in half and can even kill a small dog.
"It would require immediate intervention," Michael Russello, an associate professor of biology at the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia, said of the fish being spotted in Burnaby.
"If one has been observed, there is probably more than one there," he said.
He said it's possible the fish could have been dumped out of a fish tank, which is what happened in the U.S.
"It's a big problem down in the States," Russello said. "They have a primitive lung that allows them to move across land to other water bodies," he said.
"[B]They're very scary. They're an ambush predator. They can take a small dog[/B]."
The invasive species is a top-level predatory fish that comes from Asia and Africa.
It has been spotted in Ontario and [B]is able to live out of water for slightly less than an hour while it crawls across land[/B], seeking more ponds and lakes to invade.
Don Hunter, assistant director of Burnaby parks, said staff have not seen the fish but have contacted the ministry of the environment and a biologist to investigate and try to identify the fish.
Christopher Harley, an associate professor of zoology at UBC, said he was shocked to find that snakehead fish are being sold live at the T&T market in Richmond.
"It doesn't make sense to cater to live sales," he said, adding it increases the risk of the invasive species being released into local waters.
He said some local Buddhist temples release live seafood, called "emancipation," to bring good karma.
Harley pointed out that a type of invasive sea snail from the Atlantic has been found on Vancouver beaches. The snail feeds of seaweed and reduces the biodiversity of seaweed species, he explained.
He said live snails are also being sold at local markets, which could be a source of sightings at local beaches.
"It would be nice not to sell the live snails also," Harley said.
The person who made the video and posted it online with the comment: "Was at Central Park on Mother's Day, took a walk around the lagoon to check out the carp and Koi. To my surprise I spotted a snakehead fish, a very large one."
The videographer speculated that the snakehead fish may have been dumped in the water by someone who had kept it in a fish tank "like the turtles in the lagoon or did the parks board do it to control the carp population?"
Snakeheads can grow up to a metre long, weigh six kilograms and a spawning female can release up to 15,000 eggs at once, mating up to five times a year.
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[url=http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Nasty+snakehead+fish+allegedly+spotted+Burnaby+Central+Park+lagoon/6626327/story.html]**SOURCE**[/url]
I'm like, five blocks away from the pond and walk by it all the time. I have thought of diving into that but NOPE NOPE NOPE. I'm not going near that water again. Someone's a raging douche to dump one of those motherfuckers in there.
There's a lot of nasty stuff in the waters of my state, but my god those things are horrifying.
Shit like this is a big problem in a lot of places, I know it's gotten pretty bad in Florida. People should just contact animal control if they want to get rid of an exotic animal and don't know what to do. Releasing them into the wild is damaging to the ecosystem and dangerous to people, especially the predatory animals.
People buy them live to eat, or keep as pets. Then release them when they decide they cannot keep them. (which is actually illegal). Native to Asia, they have no business here in the Americas. Kill all of them.
Bowfishing, Spearfishing, Rod N' Reel.
The only weapons you'll need to deal with these invaders.
[QUOTE=JoeSkylynx;35974925]Bowfishing, Spearfishing, Rod N' Reel.
The only weapons you'll need to deal with these invaders.[/QUOTE]
Fishing in Central Park is a $100 fine.
If I remember correctly, I posted a thread a few months back about the State of Maryland giving away $200 gift cards to people who caught one of those in their rivers.
Not entirely sure it was that particular fish, but I think it was.
I'd be too afraid to take the hook out of one of those things.
Fish with sharp teeth? That's not that bad- HOLY SHIT IT CAN GO ON LAND WE ARE SO FUCKED ABANDON EARTH
[quote]It has been spotted in Ontario and is able to live out of water for slightly less than an hour while it crawls across land, seeking more ponds and lakes to invade.[/quote]
Ontario starts offering rewards for each one killed, I'll get my enhanced license and start heading up to Canada on weekends. I'll fight those bastards on land, I'm not scared.
[img]http://fl.biology.usgs.gov/Snakehead_circ_1251/Snakehead_1251_8a.gif[/img]
Comic from the 50's, but the points remain true.
Hopefully any specimens will be killed quickly before some serious shit goes down.
[quote]
"If one has been observed, there is probably more than one there," he said.[/quote]
I am glad we have the experts to tell us this.
[QUOTE=Carlito;35975610]Hopefully any specimens will be killed quickly before some serious shit goes down.[/QUOTE]
please don't kill me
[QUOTE=SnakeHead;35975763]please don't kill me[/QUOTE]
GET THE FRYING PAN READY, BOYS
I expected this shit in Australia, but Canada of all places? Strange.
I would say let's eat them all but "Filet de Nasty Snakehead Fish" doesn't sound like it would do too well in restaurants.
[QUOTE=Zambies!;35977339]These things invaded Lake Superior.[/QUOTE]
Superior lake for superior fish
all hail snakehead
[QUOTE=AWarGuy;35975841]I expected this shit in Australia, but Canada of all places? Strange.[/QUOTE]
not really, loads of lakes and rivers in America have to wrecked by these fish, it was only a matter of time till they're jumped the boarder
I'm no expert on these fish, but the species sounds like quite a marvel of evolution. They are (modern) fish that have evolved to breathe air? And they are vicious predators that can take down a dog? Whether or not you like them, you have to admit it is really cool that an animal like this even exists.
[QUOTE=kidwithsword;35979160]I'm no expert on these fish, but the species sounds like quite a marvel of evolution. They are (modern) fish that have evolved to breathe air? And they are vicious predators that can take down a dog? Whether or not you like them, you have to admit it is really cool that an animal like this even exists.[/QUOTE]
There are tons of different species of fish and aquatic things that can hobble up on land. You have fish like this that have a labyrinth organ that's basically a modification of their gills that allows them to absorb oxygen out of the air. Just enough to be able to hobble around to the next lake, or around swampy areas. The popular Betta has this organ, which is why if you've ever seen one, you'd notice they stay along the surface and bite at it every few minutes. That's because they breath oxygen. Then there are fish like the appropriately named Lungfish that have actual lungs that can breath air when out of the water. Lungfish also have more bony fins, making "walking" easier.
Somewhere along the lines, it became a good tactic for things to lay their eggs out of reach of other things. So naturally, things that could push themselves out of the water for awhile had a huge advantage over things that couldn't. So then things that could hobble themselves farther away with help of better lungs, and more bony, sturdy appendages had an advantage over the other things that could hobble out of the water. But the farther you get away from the water, the dryer it gets, and you can no longer lay eggs that need to stay moist. The development of the hard shelled egg changed that, and amphibians were born.
You have lungs today because fish like this.
