Hawaii upholds moratorium on commercial aquarium fishing - The Pioneer

Hawaii upholds moratorium on commercial aquarium fishing - The Pioneer

Hawaii upholds moratorium on commercial aquarium fishing - The Pioneer

Posted: 18 Aug 2020 07:43 AM PDT

Updated

HONOLULU (AP) — The Hawaii Environmental Council has effectively extended a ban on commercial aquarium collection along the west coast of Hawaii Island.

The state council on Thursday upheld a decision by the Board of Land and Natural Resources to reject an environmental impact statement for a proposal to reopen the Big Island waters to the million-dollar aquarium fish trade.

The land and natural resources board voted in May to reject the impact statement submitted by 10 West Hawaii aquarium fish collectors and the National Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council.

The proposal would have allowed commercial aquarium collectors to take fish using fine-mesh nets, with restrictions including size and bag limits on various fish species and a reduction in the daily bag limit of Achilles tang fish from 10 to five fish.

The Hawaii Supreme Court halted aquarium fishing in September 2017 by ruling fish collection without environmental review violates the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act.

The activity is opposed by some Native Hawaiians and marine conservation groups. Many reef advocates have urged more state scrutiny for decades.

This was the first time in the 40 years since the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act was enacted that the state environmental council has presided over a policy appeal.

"The council's historic decision to affirm the land board reinforces that Hawaii's bedrock environmental review law is not merely a paper exercise," said Kylie Wager Cruz, an attorney for environmental law organization Earthjustice.

Fisherman Wilfred Kaupiko has fought for more than 30 years to protect West Hawaii reefs from what he said are damaging effects of the aquarium trade.

"This is a huge win for me and my family and for our way of life," Kaupiko said.

The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, a Virginia-based trade group, expressed disappointment with the council's decision "to ignore the evidence and support the Land Board's flawed decision."

"We are amazed that during these trying times state governing bodies continue to ignore the substantial science supporting the sustainability of the fishery and eliminate a livelihood that has supported Hawaiian families for generations," council Vice President of Government Affairs Bob Likins said in a statement.

Invasive South American fish known as the 'vegetarian piranha' found in Tennessee - Herald-Mail Media

Posted: 24 Aug 2020 02:04 PM PDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Tennessee fisherman's suspicions that he caught something extraordinary were confirmed over the weekend when state officials determined the fish was a South American pacu, a species related to the famously vicious piranha.

One big difference, however: Pacu are vegetarians, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency reported.

"The pacu is commonly called the 'vegetarian piranha.'" the agency said in a Facebook post. "Don't let their teeth freak you out, pacu are vegetarians and don't eat meat.

"Pacu have teeth that look very similar to human teeth. They have two sets of blunt molars that are used for cracking nuts and grinding up plants."

Pacu are not considered harmful to humans, but are an invasive species that can "overrun the waters they occupy," state officials said.

Fisherman Randall Adams caught the pacu recently in Rony Pond, a body of water within the John Tully Wildlife Management Area along the Mississippi River. A photo of the fish was shared by the state on Facebook, showing the dingy colored fish was flat-bodied, with fins on its back and belly.

Pacu grow up to 42 inches in length and can weigh as much as 97 pounds depending on the species, state officials said. They are "delicious" and often served in restaurants in South America, officials added.

"How did it get into Rony Pond? Pacu are suitable for home aquariums, but grow rapidly and can live for 15-25 years. So the odds are the fish outgrew its aquarium, and someone relocated the fish to Rony Pond," state officials wrote on Facebook.

"It's illegal to relocate or stock fish. Illegal stockings are one-way exotic species are introduced to waters and can harm our native fish populations through diseases or harmful viruses."

Investigators suspect the pacu was recently put in the pond, because the species can't survive in winter temperatures below 58 degrees.

This is not the first time a pacu has been caught in southern waters. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks reported on Facebook that one measuring 15 inches long was caught in Issaquena County's Steel Bayou in 2012.

Angler Maxine Smith of Mayersville told state officials the fish was surprisingly strong. "All of a sudden I hooked a fish that almost snatched me into the water," Smith was quoted saying. "At first, I thought it was a big shad or a buffalo, but then I saw the teeth!"

(c)2020 The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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PHOTO (for help with images, contact 312-222-4194): ENV-TENN-FISH

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