While fishing for striped bass in South Carolina, a teenager caught an invasive cousin of the vicious freshwater carnivore, the piranha. It’s something much more unusual and frightening looking: a South American Pacu.
Drew Patrick, 15, has been fishing at his family’s favorite spot in northwest South Carolina, Lake Hartwell, every week for years, he said in an interview. He has never seen a fish like the Pacu. Curious, he took his catch to the Department of Natural Resources, where its species was confirmed.
Although Pacus are not naturally found in North America, they are aquarium purchases that outgrow their tanks and, unfortunately, are illegally released into waterways like Hartwell, a reservoir of 56,000 acres. The chief of freshwater fisheries at the SCDNR, Ross Self, said in an interview “It’s unusual, but not completely unusual.”
Unlike their dangerous relatives, pacus are not a threat to humans thanks to their strong jaws filled with human-like flat teeth instead of razor-sharp ones. Nevertheless, these exotic fish cause trouble by worsening the environment for local fish life; they spread parasites and eat up scarce food and space sources. Pacus have managed to settle in various states like Florida, Texas, Hawaii, California, and Massachusetts likely due to irresponsible pet owners releasing them into the wild.
Non-native fish do not spawn in Upstate lakes and are not currently a threat to South Carolina fish species. However, Self-emphasized they are illegal, adding, “releasing these species is a violation of state law.”
Self said the first pacu was caught in Lake Wylie in 2003, and anyone caught releasing non-native fish into the water will be prosecuted. However, catching offenders as they release fish into the water is a Herculean task. Patrick, however, has no problem with that rule because he plans to keep his pacu catch. He plans to mount and hang the fish in his barn, preserving a special memory for future generations.
Sources: Wideopenspaces
