PIRANHA SOUP
Newspaper and Television accounts of piranhas being caught in non-native waters.
by Frank Magallanes
In most cases television or newspaper reporters do not retract the story or do a follow up. This leaves the piranha with bad publicity and wildlife officials unchallenged to promulgate new prohibited species laws. All based on bad science and public fear. Please do not release unwanted pet fish, especially pacus!
September 27, 2011 - P. nattereri specimen caught in Pearland, Texas
September 19, 2009 - Delaware river (New Jersey), a 14 inch pacu caught, misidentified by DNR as piranha.
September 17, 2009 - Wisconsin, pacu captured, misidentified as piranha.
August 24, 2009 Wabash river, Lafayette, Indiana, Pacu captured. Fish misidentified as piranha by DNR.
August 20, 2009 - Piranha cousin caught in Marshalltown pond (Iowa).
August 18, 2009 Fish with Human Teeth: Pacu along the Texas coast.
August 6, 2009. Mystery Fish caught at I.O.O.F. park, not a piranha.
April 10, 2009; Red Pacu, not piranha caught in Lake Keowee.
April 5, 2009 - Lake Hartwell, SC. Upstate fisherman catches a Pacu, calls it a piranha.
ON-LINE FISH DEALER BUSTED FOR SELLING PIRANHAS ILLEGALLY TO FLORIDA!
July 8, 2008 - Pacu, originally ID as piranha, now further misidentified as "silver dollar".
August 20, 2007 - Pacu caught at St. Clair Shores, MI. "They told me I caught a piranha and then they said, 'Congratulations, because you will probably never catch something like this again,'" said Davison, who works for a lawn care service.
August 1, 2007 - Boy hooks piranha impostor in Hercules lake By Luke Stangel Contra Costa Times
July 25, 2007 - Relative of Piranha caught in Duncan Pond? By Dianne Derby, News Channel 7 South Carolina.
July 12, 2007 - North Carolina Wildlife officials revise piranha ID to pacu. Wildlife official stated he correctly ID the pacu and did not say it was a piranha. Newspaper retracts story with correction July 14..
July 2, 2007 - North Carolina (link has been removed, see story above) (See Fox news below for original story) man captures a pacu identified as a piranha by wildlife authorities. Further aggravating the wrong ID, Fox News Science Team is calling this fish a Serrasalmus rhombeus.
December 20, 2006- Texas Official get it wrong on Piranha Identification. Rebuttal: David M. Schleser rebuttal to Texas Official wrong ID.
July 20, 2006 - Man Catches Mystery Fish with Human-like Teeth in Texas Lake.
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UPDATED: 12/27/2011