ANGLERS have received urgent warnings to kill an invasive fish species in one part of North America.
The fish are known to carry a disease that can harm fish and other wildlife in the area.
Anglers are urged to kill the fish if they catch them Credit: Getty
The Round Goby fish is considered an invasive species in Canada Credit: Getty
In the Hilton Beach village of Ontario, Canada, fishermen are encouraged to immediately kill the invasive round goby fish when they catch them.
The Invasive Species Centre in Sault Ste. Marie in Canada considers the fish to be invasive as it “aggressively feeds on small aquatic organisms and can spawn several times each year.”
“Round goby decrease the levels of native fish by eating eggs and competing for food,” the centre states.
“It is also suggested that round goby pass a strain of botulism to the birds and fish that eat them; this toxin comes from the zebra mussels that the goby eat and causes fish and bird death.”
Across Canada, it is illegal for anglers to possess these fish or use them as bait for other fish.
In Hilton Beach, resident Karen Godson recently caught a round goby and immediately killed it, after googling the fish to determine that it was an invasive species.
Lauren Rogers, a communications coordinator with the Invasive Species Centre told SooToday that the fish “can carry a disease that impacts Great Lakes fish and fish-eating birds.”
“They are problematic because they can outcompete native fish, consume fish eggs and young, and disrupt aquatic food webs,” Rogers said.
“They are also linked to botulism outbreaks in the Great Lakes. By feeding on invasive mussels that can accumulate the botulism toxin, gobies can transfer that toxin to larger fish and fish-eating birds, contributing to fish and bird die-offs.”
The fish mostly eat zebra mussels, which no other fish in the region consume.
This allows the round goby fish to “uniquely exploit a resource that could fuel a population explosion,” the centre states.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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