Pennsylvania Fishermen Urged to Clear Snakeheads From River [View All]

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Pennsylvania Fishermen Urged to Clear Snakeheads From River

Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Snakeheads, the carnivores nicknamed ``Frankenfish,'' are on the loose in the Delaware River, posing a threat to a key part of Pennsylvania's $1.6 billion-a-year fishing industry.

State officials said in December that an 8-inch northern snakehead was caught near Philadelphia International Airport, a year after two of the fish turned up in a park in South Philadelphia. They now worry that the Asian import, with its razor-sharp teeth and aggressive temperament, may wreak havoc on the river's bluegills, bass and perch.

``We're encouraging anglers to harvest and kill all that they can,'' Mike Kaufmann, a biologist with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, said in an interview this month. ``We don't know how many more there are.''

There may not be much more they can do.

Snakeheads and other invasive species cause $137 billion a year in damage to the U.S. economy, the U.S. Geological Survey estimates.

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No studies have been done on the snakehead's impact on a river or lake, said Bryan Chikotas, a fisheries technician with the Fish and Boat Commission. Snakeheads, which resemble pikes or water snakes with diamond markings on the back and head, probably were dumped into U.S. waterways by live-food traders or overwhelmed pet owners, game officials said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aaAE9X0umuQ4&refer=us