Several fish recently caught at Penghu’s Singren Reservoir (興仁水庫) that were initially thought to be piranhas are omnivorous aquarium pets that pose no threat to local residents, Penghu County officials said.
Last month, several county residents sent some of the fish they caught at the reservoir to the Singren borough warden’s office because they thought that the fish resembled piranhas, Singren Borough Warden Wang Tai-ping (王太平) said.
Wang said he handed the live fish over to county officials for identification.
On Nov. 30, county officials delivered one of the live specimens that survived captivity to the Council of Agriculture’s Penghu Marine Biology Research Center, where experts identified it as the red-bellied pacu, a omnivorous Amazonian fish that poses no threat to humans, despite being a close relative of piranhas.
Penghu Agriculture and Fisheries Bureau official Lan Chih-lan (藍志嵐) and Penghu Animal Disease Control Center official Kuo Jen-cheng (郭仁政) reassured local residents that the red-bellied pacu found at the reservoir are “not a cause for alarm.”
The fish were likely to have been introduced to the reservoir by an aquarium keeper who abandoned their pets, the officials added.
The red-bellied pacu is distinguished by its tailfin and body shape, as well as its blunt teeth, which contrasts with the sharp and pointed teeth of carnivorous piranhas, they said.
One of the three major reservoirs on Penghu Island, Singren Reservoir is a primary source of fresh water for local residents and an important habitat for the local wildlife, including tilapia, goldfish and softshell turtles, the officials said.
However, the Singren Reservoir has in recent years been plagued by invasive species, such as suckermouth catfish and non-indigenous turtles, which conservationists said disrupt the area’s ecology.
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