It wasnsa国际传媒檛 quite like a scene from the Piranha movie series, but two fishermen were surprised when they caught something much different from the rainbow trout they were angling for.
Sam Cho, a Nanaimo sport fisherman, said hesa国际传媒檇 recommended Thomas Lee and Leesa国际传媒檚 friend try their luck catching trout at Westwood Lake on Tuesday. The university students were fishing from the bluff rocks in Westwood Lake, one of Nanaimosa国际传媒檚 most popular summertime swimming areas, when something hit Leesa国际传媒檚 bait and he reeled in what appeared to be a piranha.
The novice anglers, not certain what kind of fish it was, took pictures with a cell phone and sent them to Cho.
sa国际传媒淭hey sent the pictures to me to confirm what this is. They thought it was a piranha, so I confirmed, yes, itsa国际传媒檚 a piranha,sa国际传媒� Cho said.
He recommended Lee file a report with the B.C. Conservation Officer Service and put the fish in their refrigerator at home so conservation officers could study the remains.
The B.C. Ministry of Forest, Lands and Natural Resources did not have anyone available for comment, but did confirm in an e-mail Friday that the fish was positively identified as a red-bellied piranha.
Cho said he has spoken with other anglers who told him they caught a fish that looked like a piranha in Westwood Lake earlier in the year. The ministry also confirmed that incident, from late July, when the fish was submitted to ministry staff and also identified as a red-bellied piranha.
sa国际传媒淸Fishermen] worry about them spreading through the lake because if somebody caught one before, itsa国际传媒檚 not only one fish, so thatsa国际传媒檚 a big concern and then if a piranha really found a mate over there maybe itsa国际传媒檚 dangerous to the kids,sa国际传媒� Cho said.
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Tristan Robbins, manager of Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C.sa国际传媒檚 Vancouver Island Trout Hatchery in Duncan, expressed surprise at the news of the catch. The hatchery stocks central Vancouver Island lakes, including Westwood, with catchable size rainbow trout twice each year.
sa国际传媒淲e typically donsa国际传媒檛 encounter [piranhas], but we do hear these random sporadic stories of it and just speaks to how the public needs to be better educated on moving invasive species sa国际传媒� I assume thatsa国际传媒檚 an aquarium fish that somebodysa国际传媒檚 released thinking thatsa国际传媒檚 somewhere their pet would do well,sa国际传媒� Robbins said.
Robbins said piranhas are warm water fish and likely would not fare well in temperatures under 24 C.
sa国际传媒淭heysa国际传媒檇 be OK over the summer, but as soon as winter comes I donsa国际传媒檛 think that thing would be very likely to survive sa国际传媒� but in the summer months they could wreak a lot of havoc just by eating all the fish in there,sa国际传媒� he said.
The BCCOS e-mail also confirmed piranhas cansa国际传媒檛 survive Nanaimosa国际传媒檚 winter temperatures and that there has been no opportunity to study the potential impact of piranhas as an invasive species in Canada or the U.S. since the fish havensa国际传媒檛 successfully established themselves in the 13 U.S. states theysa国际传媒檝e been detected, which all have warmer water temperatures than in Canada.
As for being a threat to humans, that risk also appears low.
sa国际传媒淭he red-bellied piranha does have the reputation of being an aggressive predator to humans. While care should be taken when handling them live, the risk to humans is low,sa国际传媒� the e-mail noted.
The BCCOS also said the piranhas were likely aquarium fish dumped in the lake, and cautioned the public to never buy aquarium fish from overseas and also to ensure fish and other aquarium plants and rocks are not invasive before buying. Also, unwanted aquarium pets should be donated to a local pet store, other fish owners, fish clubs, schools, nursing homes, or offices and never dumped or flushed into local waterways. Diseased fish cannot be donated and should be humanely euthanized and disposed of in a landfill.
sa国际传媒淧ersons convicted for a first offence of the illegal movement of aquatic invasive species could be fined up to $100,000 and/or a prison term of up to 12 months, and for a second offence a fine of not more than $200,000 and not less than $2,000 and/or to a term of imprisonment not exceeding two years,sa国际传媒� the e-mail noted.
People who suspect theysa国际传媒檝e caught an introduced species are asked to report it to the nearest Forest, Land and Natural Resources office or call the RAPP (Report All Poachers and Polluters) line at 1-877-952-7277.
Lee, who has returned to university in Ontario, has not replied to a request for an interview, but Cho said the piranha, landed Tuesday, was caught with yellow-orange PowerBait, intended for trout, on a line and sinker.
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