San Francisco To Establish Dumping Pond For Unwanted Fish

By Leonard Ho

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As part of a Mountain Lake (San Francisco) restoration project, earlier this month, the Presidio Trust administered 47 gallons of rotenone* into the water in order to kill all the fish because the lake had become completely overrun with nonnative carps (e.g. goldfish). Next summer, the Trust will restock the lake with only native species. *Rotenone binds to fish’s gills and is only toxic to fish.

The restoration efforts will be all for not if nonnative species find their way back into the lake. How did they get there in the first place? People who no longer wanted their pet fish disposed their livestock into the lake. Over time, these invasive fish bred and out-competed or consumed native species and drastically altered if not devastated the native habitat. This is a phenomenon that is all too commonplace around the world.

To prevent the reintroduction of invasive species, The Presidio Trust will set up a special “amnesty pond” near Mountain Lake specifically built to allow people to dump their unwanted pet fish without endangering natural bodies of water.

People often dispose of fish into the wild with the best intentions. Take for example …read more

Read more here: Advanced Aquarist