I have been asked many times and so have many others what got them into the hobby. Well mine is a little different since my cousin has been involved with Orcas ever since the first one was ever kept in captivity. It was back in 1964 in the month of July that a television broadcast out of Vancouver had released footage of the first ever Killer Whale is in captivity and being under creative commons a link that includes that footage is in this article.
I was 7 years of age back then and my parents had their holidays in August that year so it was let us go to the Vancouver Aquarium to see this mammal that lives in our oceans and generally throughout my early years we would visit Vancouver quite often.
The first time however was special looking at all the interesting freshwater and saltwater displays that ranged from Discus with Cardinal Tetras to that of the Native fish including the wolf eel that inhabit the Pacific Ocean. I was totally amazed at the diversity of aquatic life forms but what really made me hooked on aquatic life was the Orca whale. Moby Bell was huge but was a very graceful swimmer that I basically stood there with my mouth open in amazement. I wanted her.. and what made me want her was my cousin said come here you want to feed her. I stated yes so he handed me this fish and just whistled to her like a trained dog. She swam up to the enclosure edge and opened her mouth and my cousin said pet her tongue at that moment I was sold on the idea of having fish and bothered my parents for months after to have an aquarium by Christmas time.
Needless to say my father explained that we did not have room to keep a pool large enough to house an Orca but I got my aquarium and got involved with fish keeping as well as joining the local Calgary Aquarium Society In which throughout time I have been on the board of directors.
The rest of the article is on a video that has to do with two endangered populations (races) of Orcas that can be found on this video that I have done for the Boston Aquarium Society education committee.
A Look At Aquatics Orca Whales on BBC One Full Presentation
Authors: World Aquarium Singapore & Chewy Ltd
January 31, 2020
The introduction of this video was done by YouTuber World Aquarium Singapore for the purpose of this educational video. However, unlike the video that is on the World Aquarium Singapore channel where he discusses the issues of choosing ornamental Asian Arowanas and their care, this video gets into the knowledge about why these ornamentally raised fish by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora registered Asian Arowana farms in various different countries in Asia.
The Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora are involved in many different fish species. Aquarium hobbyists know about throughout the world from a variety of families that are bred in conventional fish farms without the issues of being a prohibited species and without a form of tracking unlike the Asian Arowana.
What some people may not realize is that these sanctioned farms in Asia go through strict security that have set guidelines that are over seen by this organization to assure that each of the fish are properly chipped (GPS tracking Chip) that is easily scanned and tracked as well as strict bio security unlike the fish farms in Florida and other parts of the United States. These farms also have to be licenced by CITES and each farm gets a special tracking chip just in case fish get stolen or released into the wild.
Asian arowanas are no different than any other endangered fish in the aquarium hobby each fish that is kept in low population will have some issue with human manipulation of genetics. So like guppies there are various different ornamental strains of this fish available to those countries that accept the registration of these farm raised animals.
The laws involving wild Asian Arowanas and other fish still are under the guidance of the laws determining these fish in the wild.
So why is it that the United States is not part of the acceptance of importing Asian Arowanas with the fish actually costing money for paper work to prove that the fish is farm raised as well as the fish easily being traced by a GPS chip. When this cost so much money it is very unlikely that some person would be ignorant enough to let them go when these fish in the Canadian Market place for example can average well over a $1000.00 and be traced back to its owner unlike the other fish that are invasive to several parts of the United States
Now a question would also be is the USA government and their representative aware of endangered fish?
Quite obviously yes as many other hobby organizations that really have no say in government policies have been involved in bringing in fish that are just as endangered that you see not only on Youtube but in Aquarium Hobby today.
In the description of the video there will be a link to the sanctioned farms and to legally breed Asian Arowanas the farm or breeder must be registered with C I T E S unlike most of the other fish that are endangered and bred in conventional fish farms
submitted by Chewy LTD
Collaborated with Dan Hodnett
Nov. 7, 2019
Due to the fact that Canadians can not keep Native Fish except for certain Bait Fish species under the bait fish of the Ontario Fishing licence where they are able to keep only native species to that region (no other province). It is one of my projects to help educate Canadians about Native species that are either prohibited (due to some are thought to be invasive) or due to our law in Canada where we are not allowed to keep any native fish except under permit that can survive in our water ways. I do believe that the Channa (Snakehead) prohibition is being also disputed especially the species that are from India and Africa that Chris Biggs has spoken about on a live on his channel. So far no real word has been put out but it is actually contested due to the fact that none of those fish could survive most of Canada’s winters. I am waiting to hear from Chris Biggs as to my question about why some of the Native Species are not on the CARES list that are endangered that there are fish in the hobby that are kept by people in North American Native Fish Association . It is an interesting question to say the least as those fish could be kept outside in fish ponds. Perhaps it may have to do with the US Fish And Wildlife however various different endangered Pupfish are on The CARES Preservation Program list. that are threatened in their waterways.
Your Native Land and its water ways represent the natural evolution of how the planet developed over several years that are too high to count. This duration of time allowed both fauna and flora species to evolve and to open up another topic for the SLC Aquatics Newsletter. I decided to put together this article dealing with some of the piscine species that are natural species to the area of Canada as a whole, although some native fish may be introduced to other waters in Canada by the federal or provincial government. Very few people can legally keep Canadian species except for those in Ontario under the Bait fish licence of that province. None of the other provinces are allowed to keep any native species unless they have special permits that may be guided from province to province. This is the Bait Fish that those who want to keep Native fish in Ontario. However they must have a registered fishing licence with the province of Ontario.
In saying that, the other provinces have got their laws involved in the species in which the angler has to abide by catch limits and the species that they are allowed to catch and take home and eat for human consumption. So in a presentation, I decided to educate the YouTube @Fishfam. I looked at certain extant, endangered and extinct species to inform the viewing audience about some of the fish that inhabit some of the waterways in Canada. The presentation also includes original music to best describe the land of Canada for the listening audience. The presentation is in memory of Gord Downie, (RIP) the lead singer of the Tragically Hip.
It is not surprising that some of the species that inhabit the Canadian Waterways have other population points in the United States. So lets take a look at the species of fish that are presented here.
1. First off the Arctic Grayling (Thymallus arcticus) that inhabits the waterways of northern B.C. from the Peace and Stikine rivers north and in the south in the flathead river. The general habitat is the clear waters of large, cold rivers, rocky creeks and lakes. A very beautiful fish and is commonly consumed by the northern BC population of fishermen and those that visit Northen B.C on Fishing Trips.
2. The Bowfin (Amia calva) are demersal freshwater piscivores native to North America, and commonly found throughout much of the eastern United States, and in southern Ontario and Quebec.
3. The brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) is a small freshwater fish that is distributed across the US and Canada. It grows to a length of about 2 inches. It occupies the northern part of the eastern United States, as well as the southern half of Canada.
4. Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere in North America, to Iceland, Europe, and Asia.
5. The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus. One of the black basses, it is a popular game fish sought by anglers throughout the temperate zones of North America, and has been spread by stocking as well as illegal introduction to many cool-water tributaries and lakes in Canada and more so introduced in the United States. The maximum recorded size is approximately 27 inches and 12 pounds. The smallmouth bass is native to the upper and middle Mississippi River basin, the Saint Lawrence River and Great Lakes system, and up into the Hudson Bay basin. Its common names include smallmouth, bronzeback, brown bass, brownie, smallie, bronze bass, and bareback bass.
6. The bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) is found in the cold, clear waters of the high mountains and coastal rivers of northwestern North America, including Yukon, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and western Montana, as well as the Jarbidge River of northern Nevada. A population of bull trout exists east of the Continental Divide in Alberta, where it is the provincial fish. The historical range of bull trout also included northern California, but they are likely extirpated.
7. Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) are native to the Nearctic, being well distributed in lower Canada and the eastern and northern United States, as well as parts of northern Mexico.
8. The common carp or European carp (Cyprinus carpio) is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia. The native wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Information about the Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio), a warm-water fish introduced to Ontario by the government. The species is not a natural species to Canadian waters but was introduced into the the Great Lakes region from the upper St. Lawrence River to Lake Superior. At the time that this article was written a debate about Exotic Species and what to do with them has been discussed through many YouTube Channels and many of the Exotics in various different places have been introduced for the fisherman for Human consumption.
9. The flathead catfish (Pylodictis olivaris) also called by several common names including mudcat or shovelhead cat, is a large species of North American freshwater catfish in the family Ictaluridae. It is the only species of the genus Pylodictis. Ranging from the lower Great Lakes region to northern Mexico. It has been widely introduced and is an invasive species in some areas. The closest living relative of the flathead catfish is the much smaller widemouth blindcat, Satan eurystomus.
10. The green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus) is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. A panfish popular with anglers, the green sunfish is also kept as an aquarium fish by hobbyist. The green sunfish is native to a wide area of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, from the Hudson Bay basin in Canada, to the Gulf Coast in the United States, and northern Mexico.
11. The lake chub (Couesius plumbeus) is a freshwater cyprinid fish found in Canada and in parts of the United States. Of all North American minnows, it is the one with the northernmost distribution. Its genus, Couesius is considered monotypic today. The genus was named after Dr. Elliott Coues, who collected the holotype specimen.
12. Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides are native to North America, and its native range was generally restricted to the fresh waters of eastern-central North America including the lower Great Lakes. Largemouth Bass is a freshwater fish that has currently, a distribution similar to the smallmouth bass in Canada, although it is not found in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, or Prince Edward Island and probably not in Newfoundland. It is probably best known in the Kawartha and Rideau Lakes in Ontario. In B.C., Largemouth Bass are found in the Columbia River system including, Vaseaux, Osoyoos, Christina and Kootenay lakes.
14. The Longnose Gar (Lepisosteus osseus) is found in the St. Lawrence River, along the eastern seaboard, Quebec and all the Great Lakes except Superior. They prefer slow moving water in large rivers, lakes and streams. They are found in both freshwater and saltwater .
15. Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy) a cool-water fish native to Ontario. The species are found from the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes basin, north to Lake Nipissing and west to Lake of the Woods.
16. Northern Pike (Esox lucius) a cool-water fish native to Ontario and is widely distributed throughout most of the province although it is not historically found in parts of central Ontario but gradually expanding into these areas. The Northern Pike is also considered an invasive species in the province of British Columbia and the BC Government has got a $10.00 bounty on the head of A Pike. See information below B.C. offers bounty to encourage pike fishing
18. The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is native only to the rivers and lakes of North America, west of the Rocky Mountains, but its value as a hard-fighting game fish and tasty meal has led to its introduction throughout the world.
19. The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus. One of the black basses, it is a popular game fish sought by anglers throughout the temperate zones of North America, and has been spread by stocking as well as illegal introduction to many cool-water tributaries and lakes in Canada and more so introduced in the United States. The maximum recorded size is approximately 27 inches and 12 pounds. The smallmouth bass is native to the upper and middle Mississippi River basin, the Saint Lawrence Riverâ; Great Lakes system, and up into the Hudson Bay basin. Its common names include smallmouth, bronzeback, brown bass, brownie, smallie, bronze bass, and bareback bass.
20. The spotted gar (Lepisosteus oculatus) is native to North America and its current range is from southern Ontario to the west from the Nueces River in Texas east to the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico and southeast to the lower Apalachicola River in Florida. The gar population is small in the north and is being threatened in Lake Erie by the destruction of their habitat and pollution. The gar is more common in the southern waters like the Mississippi River basin from southern Minnesota to Alabama and western Florida. Historical records indicate the spotted gar resided in the Thames and Sydenham Rivers in Ontario, Canada. Also, the fish was once common in Illinois in the Green and Illinois Rivers to the swamps in Union County; though sporadic, the population has dwindled in these water systems because of the loss of specific habitat they need to live, clear pools with aquatic vegetation.
21. The fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) is a species of temperate freshwater fish belonging to the genus Pimephales of the cyprinid family. The natural geographic range extends throughout much of North America, from central Canada south along the Rockies to Texas, and east to Virginia and the Northeastern United States. This minnow has also been introduced to many other areas via bait bucket releases. Its golden, or xanthic, strain, known as the rosy-red minnow, is a very common feeder fish sold in the United States and Canada. This fish is best known for producing Schreckstoff (a distress signal).
22. The walleye (Sander vitreus, synonym Stizostedion vitreum) also called the yellow pike, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European zander, also known as the pikeperch. The walleye is sometimes called the yellow walleye to distinguish it from the blue walleye, which is a subspecies that was once found in the southern Ontario and Quebec regions. It is now presumed extinct.
23. The White Sucker (Catostomos commersonii) Restricted to North America, and widely distributed throughout Canada. In our province, the species occurs only in Labrador.
24. Yellow perch (Perca flavescens) are North America’s most popular freshwater fish, having been commercially harvested for more than a century. Weighing up to a pound (450 g), they live in large schools in the shallow waters of the Great Lakes. Lake Erie, being the shallowest of the Great Lakes, has the most productive commercial fishery for yellow perch.
25. The banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus) is a North American species of temperate freshwater killifish belonging to the genus Fundulus of the family Fundulidae. Its natural geographic range extends from Newfoundland to South Carolina, and west to Minnesota, including the Great Lakes drainages. This species is the only freshwater killifish found in the northeastern United States. While it is primarily a freshwater species, it can occasionally be found in brackish water. The Newfoundland population is considered a threatened population. The Banded Killifish can not be kept by any Canadian as it is not legal to keep or transport the species from its habitat. I inquired with American Killifish Association member Dan Hodnett as to whether any of this population would be available for foreign aquarist to maintain as under many situations according to the C.A.R.E.S Preservation Program. Due to it having its own population genetics, it would be interesting to find out if this particular race of the species is available in the Aquarium hobby to try to ensure it’s survival. To listen to Dan’s answers check his life stream where the topic came up. Livestream #96
26. White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) In 2003, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) identified six Nationally Significant Populations (NSPs) of White Sturgeon in Canada: Lower Fraser River, Middle Fraser River, Nechako River, Upper Fraser River, Upper Columbia River, and Kootenay River. The first two of these NSPs were declined for listing and the latter four were listed as Endangered under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) in August 2006. A final Recovery Strategy addressing the four listed NSPs was published in 2014.
27. The Banff longnose dace (Rhinichthys cataractae smithi) was a diminutive (about five cm. long) version of the eastern longnose dace. Its range restricted to a small marsh fed by two hot springs on Sulphur Mountain in Banff, a National Park in Banff, Alberta.
Since most Canadians can not keep native species in Canada and many of the species inhabit the United States where the The North American Native Fishes Association is operated out of the United States. There are many different channels that touch the subjects of collecting Native Fish such as this recent video done by titled NATIVE FISH COLLECTING IN THE SWAMP! – W/ (AQUA FUNK AQUATICS) would be interesting for any one of the #FishFam that are interested in Native American Fish from Florida https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1g6KZls9vIw Another excellent live stream to check out to deal with the topic of collecting Native Fish is done by Wild Fish Tanks with the topic DOs and DONTs of Collecting Wild Fish For Aquarium with Q&A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8nlaElTyNk&t=851s
To close this off: What questions would you ask? Does the country that you live in allow you as a hobbyist to keep Native Fish found in Your Native Land?
Due to the fact that Canadians can not keep Native Fish, except for certain Bait Fish species, under the bait fish of the Ontario Fishing licence, where they are able to keep only native species to that region (no other province). It is one of my projects to help educate Canadians about Native species that are either prohibited (due to some are thought to be invasive) or due to our law in Canada where we are not allowed to keep any native fish except under permit that can survive in our water ways. I do believe that the Channa (Snakehead) prohibition is being also disputed. The species that are from India and Africa that Chris Biggs has spoken about on his channel. So far no real word has been put out but it is actually contested due to the fact that none of those fish could survive in most of Canada’s winters. I am waiting to hear from Chris Biggs in response to my question about, why some of the Native Species are not on the CARES list, that are endangered that there are fish in the hobby that are kept by people in North American Native Fish Association. It is an interesting question to say the leas, as those fish could be kept outside in fish ponds. Perhaps it may have to do with the US Fish And Wildlife. Various different endangered Pupfish are on The CARES Preservation Program list that are threatened in their waterways.
There is A Head of A Snake in My Aquarium
submitted by Chewy Ltd.
September 2019
For some of us we really do want a Head of a Snake in our Aquariums and as a follow up to the Invasive Species and Exotic species that was done on the Mysis Shrimp Article that was posted in a previous SLC Aquatics Fish Family Newsletter. I decided to take another look into Invasive species and what can be done. I also looked at a certain Family of fish. This Family of fish known as Channidae is broken up into 3 extant(still in existence) Genus known as Aenigmachanna, Channa and Parachanna. This article is going to concentrate on the Genus Channa where some species may be getting a bad rap due to certain species in that Genus. This is due to their representation in YouTube Media as well as media in general and how certain species of this Genus may be a lot different than what people think of how this genus is described. The Genus is known as the Genus Channa and commonly referred to as Snakeheads. First off, like everything there are only so many species of this Genus that have been discovered and classified by science but more like so many other fish, some are actually being discovered since a lot of the resources on the Internet can keep up with this. Places like India where a lot of new species to the hobby have been introduced, relatively lately, such as the Indian Mudskipper and the Indian Pea Puffer that seem to be popular all over with the aquarium hobby as they are a tropical fish that are handled by many pet shops around the world. However when most people think of certain fish by common name they think of the characteristics of those fish in how media have depicted them such as the blood thirsty Red Bellied Piranha that Jeremy Wade of River Monsters has literally gone into a pool without the fish paying attention to him. Could the same be said about a misrepresentation of the Snakehead family? Through watching National Geographic features on the Snakehead the viewer is not actually told about the nature of all of the species just some that have been proven to be invasive due to the fact of the way that the species that they have chosen represent that side of the nature of certain species that are known to be predatory fish that come from Russia and parts of Asia where these fish are actually thought of as a fish for Human consumption and are considered a delicacy when served in some of those Asian Cultures.
Invasion of the Snakeheads! | National Geographic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmU7etSYYqI
Due to when this documentary was released it states out of the 29 species of Snakeheads “Many of the Snakeheads are Predators” which comes down to the specific research that you do on these species. But what about the other species that are not top predators, as this is where the educational factor began for myself as I got to know a current director of the Calgary Aquarium Society that moved from India and was familiar with various different species of Channa that inhabit the water ways of India. That informed me about what is known as the Dwarf Snakeheads in India that are marketed and bred in various different countries of Asia and are actually bred in England by various different hobbyists. (England being the only English Country to not have these particular fish Prohibited according to the information that I was able to research if your country or state allows certain species please comment below with that information). I know how Americans feel about the Asian Arowana and them not being able to keep them however both USA and Canada have the Genus Channa prohibited due to how “Many of the Snakeheads are Predators”. So for a few years I have been studying this particular group of fish to find out more or less some more back ground information as to what Channa species would be dangerous for an environment and the reasons why these regulations exist. It is truly understandable why the Northern Snakehead would be banned from Canada as there would be really no natural predators and would deplete endemic fish stocks if released into Canadian and Northern American States.
At the beginning of my research at the time I was discussing this with my friend from the Calgary Aquarium Society I was intrigued due to the fact that one of the Snakeheads known as the Blotched Snakehead (Channa maculata) was released in Burnaby Park in Burnaby British Columbia that caused the Fish and Wildlife People to become involved in eradicating that particular predatory Channa species from the Lake just before meeting him.
So I did go in not knowing about the other species that this article is about. However when discussing the topics of fish from India and surrounding areas he did mention the fact that he kept a certain species known as Channa Andrao that feeds upon insects and other invertebrates in nature and has the breeding habits of a betta but the parental behavior of the family Cichlidae. The species maintains a size of about 5 inches in length. Kind of sounds like your every day pair of Cichlids that are kept in the hobby that are from Tropical India, but a little less aggressive to fish as some of these dwarf snakeheads can even be seen on YouTube with small fish. Just doing the research to find out that these fish are not exactly portrayed correctly but governments have banned them primarily due to the fact of Identification. It seems as though once they read the word Channa or Snakehead they freak out as though it is a natural disaster. Meanwhile we see various different types of exotic and invasive species swimming around in areas where fish farms are. Little attention is paid to them of the same size such as Jewel Cichlids being found in Florida pools with little thought given by the public. There are many beautiful species of the Snakehead family that are kept in the aquarium hobby that most hobbyists do not know about due to the fact that most of the English speaking countries have prohibited the species. So very little study is done on this group especially by those involved in the hobby. There are few that I would really like to have; a Head of a Snake in My Aquarium such as Channa bleheri (Named after Heiko Bleher), Channa Andrao (Named after Andrew Rao) and the Beautiful Channa Barca that is depicted below and has been shown to live with small tetras and other small fish on Youtube. The video below is of young Channa Barca from the video collection of my friend, Mr. David Leuken of Fengshui Aquatics (Fish Farm and Exporter) of Thailand. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZON7Dcq9i4
In closing this article, though I do understand some of the particular issues involved in allowing certain species into countries, but one of the reasons that could be a cause of all species being banned is not many custom workers are trained in the field of species identification, thusly, I would think that permits would have to be required at the point of the exporter similar to the permits that are part of the C I T I E S Golden Arowana program that identifies the fish.
Chewy LTD’s Response:
Yes I have seen quite a few articles dealing with Snakeheads throughout the 4 years of researching the fish of this Genus for many years there are many different species of Snakeheads so people automatically freak out due to the fact that not all knowledge is known.
This is the northern snakehead however there are over 39 species of Snakeheads this species though is what the media thrives upon .. it is the same as Sharks not all Shark species are man eaters either … Channa Bleheri The Rainbow Snakehead only gets to a maximum of 8 inches which is A Dwarf Snakehead The Genus are banned and it should only be species that can become invasive and cause great issues. The Southern USA is full of invasive big predatory fish plus the government of Florida actually introduced the Peacock Bass (Cichlid from the Amazon) to try to eradicate other smaller invasive species. It is the issues of how big these predatory fish get.
Dwarf Snakeheads can live in a community tank with other fish around their same size that impact their waterways the same as Fire mouth Cichlids that are kept in the aquarium hobby This is a video of a 6 and a half inch Rainbow Snakehead living quite peacefully with Firemouth Cichlids and other fish that are kept in the Hobby.
Here is some information on Channa Bleheri from a few other resources. The Difference between Channa Bleheri The Rainbow Snakehead and The Northern Snakehead are quite different and this is the problem you can even see American Aquarists that I know posting on this while those that have put study into the fish from Hobbyists to Ichthyologists know the difference between species. It is very similar with Catfish it is like comparing the common pictus catfish to a fish like the Big Retailed Catfish out of the Amazon. And the redtail catfish is known as a predator but the North American Hobby has that fish.
The Genus Channa has many different species that come from a wide range each species has its own area and they all range in size just like Cichlids, Catfish, Characins (Tetras) and other families of fish. I know that the USA is plagued by the Russian Snakehead which come from Russia and have a vast range in area and temperatures so they are a prime invasive species but this is like comparing a firemouth cichlid to a Peacock Bass in size. The Dwarf Snakeheads come from a tropical environment so they would not survive winters in Canada and due to their size they would be around the same type of threat as a fish the same size that are commonly kept in the aquarium hobby.
The Northern Snakehead the one in that article you sent me is the POSTER species the one that the media wants to draw attention too and make people think of how bad Snakeheads are I see articles on them All The time they have a massive natural where this species of snakehead fish native to China, Russia, North Korea, and South Korea, ranging from the Amur River to Hainan. This species deserves to be prohibited and banned. It is one of the largest snakeheads.
In the United States there has been reported populations of Northern Snakeheads that go from Florida all the way up to Virginia I know of a fisherman that went out with a biologist to gather information on this on a report in Virginia. However the Northern Snakehead is an edible species just like the Peacock bass that fishermen can catch and even eaten. Here is the series of reports done by that fisherman It is part 1 of 4 parts where the biologist appears. You may find it interesting.
Part III with The Biologist from Virginia (You may think about how the media has played this factor once you hear the issues from the biologist from the State of Virginia that is studying the impact of these fish in that state)
The Northern Snakehead is banned in Canada along with every other Snakehead just like all the rest of the countries except England who recognizes the difference so they can keep them, The Dwarf species are also kept in Aquariums in Asia and in Germany France Sweden etc because they realize that the Dwarf species come from Tropical India there is also tropical species of Large Snakeheads in Africa to that would not live in Canadian waters just like every other African fish would not live in Northern Cooler waters.
And here is a thought Canada is very proactive in trying to or eradicating Invasive species such as the Mysis shrimp that I submitted on Invasive species and how they handle that and put up a bounty for fish such as Pike maybe the USA would not have some of the issues that they have as exotic species are even caught in Florida from Swordtails, Platies, Cichlids etc and sold on ebay
Snakeheads are an edible fish as well and are a very popular food fish and are even farmed for human consumption in Asia. So there is money to be made by companies for eradicating species whether exotic or invasive Canadas Mysis issue is a prime example of that as the company is paid by the government to eradicate them plus they get to sell frozen mysis shrimp that is used by the world wide As stated Snake heads are edible . Many starving people out there including disabled and homeless people.
Here the fisherman catches the fish and eats it while he was out on the trip in that 4 part series.
SNAKEHEAD FISH | Giant Snakehead Fish | Snakehead Fish Farming
The giant snakehead or giant mudfish (Channa micropeltes) is among the largest species in the family Channidae, capable of growing to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in length and a weight of 20 kg (44 lb). Very Big Fish that is a food fish in Asia and it is a warm water species so it would greatly affect Southern States but would not be able to survive in Canadian Waters or Northern United States that have Cold Winters as they would not survive the winter time as per this article as the species comes from Malaysia and Indonesia .
The fear of a few Snakehead species being invasive like the Northern Snakehead is very real for Canada and The United States and I agree with them being prohibited as a species but as I stated there are 39 different species it would be like disallowing the Cardinal tetra because it is related to the Piranha …
Snakehead Caught in Burnaby Park in Canada
Vancouver Sun (media blowing it out of proportion due to fear)
The person who first filmed the Snakehead in Burnaby Lake in Canada
The fear that it was the Northern Snakehead was great in the media at that time people got frantic over reacted just like the media has programmed them to do with Shark species and it turned out to be a Blotched Snakehead (Channa maculata) which is a Snakehead again from Asia that would not have been able to survive our winters up here either just like any other tropical fish that can not survive the climate. Just look at the number of people the government used to catch the fish in the video presented by the Vancouver Sun to drain and catch the snakehead only to find out that it was a species that would not survive our winters. Would they do the same for an Oscar if it was seen in Burnaby Lake.? THE HUFFPOST
And direct information out of BC Invasive even admits that this species would not have survived our winters due to our climate. I was talking with the BC Invasive board about these issues so why ban smaller tropical species? Would they do that for Oscars?
OSCAR Found in Burnaby Lake … You can bet the BC Government seeing that fish will not hire anyone to remove it the fish will end up being dead as under our regulations not even a hobbyist can go and catch that fish and it is quite obvious that Hobbyists did put these in as no tropical fish farms are in Vancouver would have storms to flood pools so that the fish can escape into the wild unlike Florida.
Thank you so much, Chewy LTD. for your extensive and thorough research of these species of Snakehead fish, in the wild and in our aquariums.
PROBLUE is a new Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF), housed at the World Bank, that supports healthy and productive oceans. PROBLUE supports implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14) and is fully aligned with the World Bank’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty and increasing the income and welfare of the poor in a sustainable way. PROBLUE is part of the World Bank’s overall Blue Economy program, which takes a multi-pronged, coordinated approach to ensuring the protection and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources.
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