Snakeheads On A Plane

In 2002, the first captured discovery of a snakehead in U.S. waters was reported in a pond near Crofton, Maryland. They’ve been introduced both accidentally and illegally to other places all around the world, such as Japan, Russia, the Philippines, Madagascar, and Hawaii. (Courtenay, Williams, Northern Snakehead) There were two major factors that lead scientists to believe why Fishzilla was brought over to our lakes and rivers from Eastern Asia.                                 The first is that snakeheads were accidentally bought and sold as pets or as food in live fish markets. This was assumedly a mistake made since snakeheads bear a striking resemblance to bowfin fish. Having realized the mistake, several markets released the fish into rivers and lakes either to get rid of them or to establish a local food resource. In 2004, after an ...

                Fish are highly sought after for either food or trophies. Whether it is for sushi or mounting it on a wall in the living room, fish are caught for all sorts of reasons. Snakeheads are no different when it comes to this lifestyle. Not only are they hunted down to reduce their spread throughout our rivers and lakes, snakeheads are also considered a delicacy. People who weren’t afraid to taste a snakehead, due to its reputation, said that its meat was very firm like chicken. It doesn’t have a fishy smell, even while it’s being cooked. One taster said, [that he] “ranked eating snakehead up with mahi-mahi and flounder ”. (Ambrose, Snakehead) Perhaps eating them is how we can get rid of Fishzilla.                 Another way people have fought against the snakehead invasion is by hunting them for sport. In 2014, the state of ...

What exactly makes a snakehead a snakehead? This post will explain what a snakehead is, its role as an apex predator, and other scientific attributes. Usually found in Eastern Asia, snakeheads invaded the U.S. in 2002 and have been classified as an injurious species. They have earned the nicknames “Fishzilla” or “Frankenfish” due to their strange behavior and anatomy. So let’s learn a bit more about these creatures with this introduction. Channidae, or Snakehead as it’s commonly known as is what I will cover the most throughout this blog. The northern snakehead (Channa argus ) and the giant snakehead ( Channa micropeltes ) are the specific types that were first introduced to our Maryland shores, a topic I will cover later. This species of fish is extremely voracious, consuming prey whole within a split second. Naturally, snakeheads are predators that feed on other fish, making them apex predators. Since they have no natural opposing predators, they can hunt mercilessly without any ...