Officials issue alert after invasive Asian ‘walking fish’ species showed up in Rhode Island, USA
An alert was issued by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) on Friday (July 10) after an invasive freshwater fish from Asia was caught in a local pond.
A Northern snakehead (Channa argus) was caught by an angler at Asa Pond in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, earlier this summer, and officials say they have no idea how it got there.
“Named for their snake-like appearance, snakeheads are predatory fish native to Asia that have been introduced illegally to the United States. Snakeheads represent a risk to Rhode Island’s native freshwater fish,” the Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife Outdoor Education said in a Facebook post.
This particular fish species is commonly found in rivers, lakes, ponds, and wetlands in northern and central China, North and South Korea, and far eastern Russia, particularly the Amur River basin, though it has more recently been brought to Central Asian fisheries.
Because it is an “extremely invasive” species, RIDEM has asked other anglers who may catch a Northern snakehead to kill it immediately and not release it into bodies of water, as well as immediately report sightings. They’ve expressed concern since Asa Pond is connected to other bodies of water and more Northern snakeheads may spread.
The species is recognised as highly injurious. They eat a wide range of native fish, frogs, crayfish and other aquatic animals, mature quickly and reproduce prolifically, and have few natural predators outside their native range.
Additionally, they are sometimes known, albeit exaggeratedly, as “walking fish.”
Due to the presence of a primitive lung, Northern snakeheads are able to breathe atmospheric air and may even survive for several days out of the water if they are kept moist. They can move on wet ground by wriggling, which makes containing them even more challenging for wildlife officials.
In Maryland, Virginia, the Potomac River, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, and several other states, there are already Northern snakehead populations. It has become difficult, if not actually impossible, to eradicate them.
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In May, the first Northern snakeheads were confirmed in New York.
State officials say this is the first confirmed Northern snakehead reported in Rhode Island's freshwater system. RIDEM issued a statewide invasive species alert because the species had not previously been known to occur there.
As to how it ended up in Asa Pond, it’s possible that, similar to other incidents in the US, someone illegally released a Northern snakehead or one escaped from a private pond or fish-holding facility. /TISG
Senior Writer