PALM SPRINGS, FL -- Forget the burmese pythons, Florida Fish and Wildlife officials says a 14-year-old boy fishing in a retention pond in Palm Springs has reeled in a
piranha.
"This is huge because of the significant impact on the native fish here," said Gary Morse with FWC.
After searching for more piranhas in the pond, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission biologists found a second one. A male and a female.
"We electro-fished the pond immediately, but did not find any evidence of other piranha in those initial efforts," said Paul Shafland, exotic fish biologist with the FWC.
"However, we continued sampling this pond and collected a second specimen with gillnets. Although we have continued sampling this pond, we have not collected any other piranha."
The FWC believes the piranha were dumped in the pond from someone's aquarium. It is illegal to own a piranha in Florida. The fish is only found outside of the U.S.
"This is important because they can multpily and establish a population," said Morse.
To prevent that, FWC biologists planned to put rotenone in the pond to kill all fish in the water.
Possession of piranha in Florida is punishable by a maximum $1,000 fine and a year in jail.
