FOREIGN animal species can turn invasive if it escapes or is set free, especially if they do not have natural predators here.
Over the years, there have been many instances of such species in Malaysia, with a viral video recently claiming that an alligator gar, originating from North and Central America, was caught in the Klang River.
Is it true that an alligator gar was caught in the Klang River, as seen in viral videos and images on social media?
VERDICT:
TRUE
The Fisheries Department of Malaysia confirmed the incident, saying that an irresponsible individual had released the alligator gar into the waterway, Malay language daily Sinar Harian reported.
Selangor Fisheries director Noraisyah Abu Bakar told Sinar Harian that the pictures and videos of the capture of the 16.94kg fish had gone viral on social media.
She added that previously, in 2020, a carcass of a fish with an alligator-like head had been discovered in waters off Sabak Bernama.
“The public is urged to report any activities involving the release of alligator gar into public waters to the authorities,” she told Sinar Harian.
Noraisyah added that the Selangor Fisheries Department is taking the issue seriously and urged everyone to ensure that public waters in Selangor are only populated with native species.
“As a responsible community, we must protect our aquatic ecosystems from the threat of foreign fish species,” she told Sinar Harian.
Noraisyah explained that originally, these fish were introduced in Malaysia as aquarium pets, but they are often released into local waters when they become too large to keep.
The alligator gar, scientifically known as Atractosteus spatula, originates from North and Central America, specifically the Mississippi River and Missouri River basins.
The average size of the fish ranges from 2m to 2.5m and they typically weigh between 90kg and 110kg.
This carnivorous species consumes any fish that can fit into its mouth, making it a voracious predator that will eat anything it can catch.
Releasing foreign fish species into non-native habitats can have severe negative impacts on the balance of ecosystems. The alligator gar has the potential to compete with local species and could lead to the extinction of native fish.
Noraisyah added that the department is always ready to collaborate with various government and non-government agencies to manage the issue of foreign fish presence.
Several such programmes have been conducted with local community participation, such as the Langat River Inland Fisheries Resource Conservation Programme and the Tasik Biru Inland Fisheries Resource Conservation Programme.
