OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – An 11-year-old Oklahoma boy recently caught a fish related to the piranha in a neighborhood pond, prompting wildlife officials to warn residents not to release exotic fish into local waters.
Charlie Clinton recently reeled in a Pacu, a fish native to South American that has human-like teeth.
Images courtesy Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
“Dear, whoever released an entire Pacu (a South American fish closely related to Piranha) into a NEIGHBORHOOD pond; how dare you,” the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation said on Twitter. “DO NOT RELEASE YOUR PETS. THEY ARE AN EXOTIC, INVASIVE SPECIES THAT CAN CAUSE DAMAGE TO OUR LOCAL ECOSYSTEMS.”
Piaractus brachypomus, or the Red-Bellied Pacu, are native to the Amazon basin and are mainly herbivores, but they are known to be opportunistic carnivores that feed on zooplankton, insects and small fish or crustaceans.
“These fish are generally harmless to humans, but the practice of dumping unwanted pets in waterways is so harmful to native wildlife,” ODWC continued. “Don’t be that pet owner. Don’t let it loose.”
The Global Center for Species Survival retweeted the ODWC’s thread, saying, “These fish don’t belong in U.S. waters.” The center also noted that they can “get much bigger” than piranhas.