21 Jul, 2024 @ 08:00
2 mins read

Spain’s rivers are under threat from giant catfish: Experts fear the invasive species introduced by fishermen will destroy all biodiversity

June 5, 2023, River Po, Po Valley, Italy: VIDEO AVAILABLE: CONTACT INFO@COVERMG.COM TO RECEIVE**..An Italian fisherman caught a catfish that would have broken the world record for the largest ever to be caught - but lost out on the milestone after setting the monster fish free....The gilled Goliath was caught by angler Alessandro Biancardi in the River Po at the start of June (2023) and measured 285cm, making it the largest ever to be caught..In a blog post for his fishing team MADCAT, he wrote: “In silence I approached the first spot and after few casts a powerful bite arrived, the fish stood still some seconds before starting a very complicated fight, between strong currents and a lot of submerged obstacles. .“I calmly managed to fight what I felt to be a prehistoric fish. I followed it for 40 endless minutes. When it surfaced for the first time, I really realised that I hooked a monster, the adrenaline started pumping hard and the fear of losing it almost sent me into a panic, I was alone facing the biggest catfish I have ever seen in 23 years.”.Biancardi then had to leap off his boat to bring the catch ashore before swimming to retrieve his boat and equipment, which had begun to float downriver..Alongside ten witnesses, an official measurement was carried out - and the size of the fish surpassed the current record holder, a catfish pulled from the same river by angler Attila Zsedely in 2010, by an incredible 40 cm..However, Biancardi won't be given an official world record because he decided to release his catch back into the river rather than weigh it..He writes: ''I was very curious about the weight but I feared to stress the rare specimen too much so I decided to safely release it, hoping it could give another angler the same joy he gave to me.''.This fish will, however, qualify for the International Game Fish Association's catch-and-release length record, if confirmed by the IGFA.. (Credit Image: © Cover Images via ZUMA Press)

AN invasive species of creature that can reach over two metres in length and 100kg in weight is threatening to exterminate the biodiversity of Spain’s rivers.

“The catfish is an ecological time bomb,” said Carlos Fernandez Delgado, a professor of zoology at the University of Cordoba.

“I can’t tell the future, but in a very short time we could see the ecological richness of Spain’s rivers disappear.”

Fernandez’s organisation, Stop Catfish, is carrying out a study in the Guadalquivir River to determine the impact that the creatures are having on the local ecology, which includes the Doñana natural park.

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This catfish weighed in at an astonishing 111kg. It was hooked by a British holidaymaker on the banks of the River Segre in Mequineza, Spain. CORDON PRESS

A species native to the Danube in central Europe, the catfish was first introduced to Spain’s rivers by careless fishermen in the 1970s.

Since then, the giant fish has rapidly spread – with continued human assistance – throughout the basin systems of the country.

“This is crazy,” said Fernandez, “because it means sure you can catch the catfish, but soon nothing else. In a few years it will wipe out the native fauna.”

The river monster, which feeds not just on fish and carrion but also birds and even rodents, needs to eat 5% of its body mass every day. 

“A thousand catfish equals more than 700 tonnes of biomass exterminated over the course of a year,” said Fernandez. To make matters worse, they live on average for 30 years.

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The catfish is a freshwater beast that likes murky waters, usually inhabiting large rivers, lakes and reservoirs with both shallow and deep waters – and an abundance of fish. 

And they’re intelligent. “We know that they are capable of recognising and identifying themselves,” the professor explained.

“In some cases it has even been detected that they are capable of organising themselves in herds to hunt more successfully,” says Fernández.

Another key to their success is paternal care the father offers to his offspring. 

“Normally, a fish lays the eggs, the males fertilise them and then forgets, so they are at the mercy of other predators. 

“The catfish does not act like this. It makes a nest and then the male stays watching the spawn until the eggs hatch and the offspring begin to swim,” he says. 

An Italian fisherman caught a catfish measuring 2.85 metres in the River Po in June 2023, making it the largest ever to be caught. CORDON PRESS

This behaviour ensures the reproductive success of a species that can live up to 40 years, during which a female can lay 30,000 eggs.

Back in the Guadalquivir River, Fernandez’s team of scientists are scouring the surface with boats equipped with a sonar system. 

“If we detect fish of more than a metre in length, we know that they are catfish because only they reach that size. Eels, for example, are thinner and do not appear on the sonar.”

According to the zoologist, the lower area of ??the Guadalquivir is key to analysing the development of the catfish and its impact on the environment. 

“There are crab fisheries in the basin on which more than 200 families depend for their livelihoods.

“Imagine what it would mean for these companies if this predator, which needs two kilos of food a day, were to arrive.” 

Walter Finch

Walter Finch, who comes from a background in video and photography, is keen on reporting on and investigating organised crime, corruption and abuse of power. He is fascinated by the nexus between politics, business and law-breaking, as well as other wider trends that affect society.
Born in London but having lived in six countries, he is well-travelled and worldly. He studied Philosophy at the University of Birmingham and earned his diploma in journalism from London's renowned News Associates during the Covid era.
He got his first break in the business working on the Foreign News desk of the Daily Mail's online arm, where he also helped out on the video desk.
He then decided to escape the confines of London and returned to Spain in 2022, having previously lived in Barcelona for many years.
He took up up a reporter role with the Olive Press Newspaper and today he is based in La Linea de la Concepcion at the heart of a global chokepoint and crucial maritime hub, where he edits the Olive Press Gibraltar edition.
He is also the deputy news editor across all editions of the newspaper.

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