Is snakehead fish illegal?

Possession of the snakehead fish is illegal in some states, including Alabama, California, Florida, Texas and Washington.

How did snakehead get to America?

It is believed that the northern snakehead fish entered the United States when aquarium owners discarded their unwanted exotic captive species into local waterways. Northern snakehead fish can spread by swimming underwater and are also capable of breathing out of the water to move short distances on land.

How were snakeheads introduced to America?

In 2002, four adult snakeheads and at least a hundred juveniles were found in a pond in Crofton [west of Annapolis]. The fish was introduced there by a family as a symbolic gesture, because a woman had been suffering from an illness and then became better. So they released the fish as a token of thanks.

What is wrong with snakehead fish?

During all of their life stages, snakehead fish compete with native species for food and habitat. A major concern is that snakeheads might out-compete (and eventually displace) important native or other established predatory fish that share the same habitat. As adults, snakeheads can be voracious predators.

What problems do northern snakeheads cause?

Are snakeheads legal in the US?

Prior to being added to the list of injurious wildlife under the Lacey Act in 2002, which banned import and interstate transport without a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, snakeheads were sold in pet stores and in live food fish markets and some restaurants in several major U.S. cities, including Boston, New York, and St. Louis.

What happened to Philadelphia’s snakehead fish?

Philadelphia fisheries managers decided that poisoning or draining the park’s interconnected ponds would cause more harm to resident fish than the snakeheads would, and have resigned themselves to snakeheads becoming a new member of the park’s ecosystem.

Are snakehead fish a problem in the Mid-Atlantic?

The invasive northern snakehead fish found in the mid-Atlantic area is now cause for more concern, potentially bringing diseases into the region that may spread to native fish and wildlife, according to a team of U.S. Geological Survey scientists.

What happened to Maryland’s snakehead problem?

To eliminate the snakehead menace, Maryland wildlife officials dumped the pesticide rotenone into the Crofton pond, killing all of its fish. Six adult snakeheads went belly up—as did more than 1,000 juveniles. Problem solved. Or so it appeared. Two years later, northern snakeheads fulfilled biologists’ worst fear and showed up in the Potomac River.