Invasive Amazon sailfin catfish found thriving in Taipei’s Bihu Park

發現亞馬遜帆多輻翼甲鯰大量入侵台北碧湖公園

Amazon sailfin catfish consume native algae, moss, fish eggs, threatening local ecology: expert


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Schools of invasive Amazon sailfin catfish have invaded the lake within Bihu Park in Taipei’s Neihu District, causing great damage to indigenous fish species, according to a China Times report on Saturday (Dec. 26).

Ecology expert Chang Chia-hung (張嘉宏) said that Amazon sailfin catfish use their vacuum-like mouths to eat algae, moss, and fish eggs from the bottom of the lake, sucking up as many as 3,000 eggs a day. This invasive species seriously interrupts propagation of native fish and wreaks ecological havoc in the lake, Chang added.

Taipei City Councilor Lee Chien-chang (李建昌) and the Taiwan Conservation Association of Native Fishes on Saturday cast nets and set up long baskets and other traps in an effort to catch some catfish and protect the local ecosystem. Ultimately, they caught more than 80 of the non-native fish, according to the report.

Only through a comprehensive system of catching the invasive species can the damage be stopped, Lee said, adding that Amazon sailfin catfish can breed after growing for one year. They can grow up to 50 – 60 centimeters long in one and a half years, he stated.

When the neighboring Donghu area was flooded a few years ago, Amazon sailfin catfish were everywhere, which was a tell-tale sign that the local ecology had already been seriously affected, the city councilor said. He added that the Keelung River and Tamsui River basins have not been spared either.

Chang said that the catfish can be found in all the rivers across Taiwan, particularly in the nation's central and southern regions. The catfish breeding season, which lasts from May to August, overlaps that of many Taiwanese species, the ecology expert said. Their ability to lay thousands of eggs greatly adds to the threat they pose to the local ecosystem, Chang added.

Floriculture Experiment Center Director Sung Fu-hua (宋馥華) said that if the city government and civic groups can work together to successfully catch Amazon sailfin catfish, such a model will be promoted on a larger scale. Hubin Borough Chief Chen Yu-xue (陳尤雪) suggested to the Parks and Street Lights Office that a routine long-term catching program be established to achieve beneficial outcomes, per China Times.