Pirana in Minnesota?

[DARK30]

I heard theres been a few Pirana caught in Minnesota, including the Mississippi River. How can this be? I guess these fish could be released by people who have had them as pets but could they survive here?

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[Guest]

I heard about a story of a pirahna that was caught in the MN River.A silvery fish with yellow eyes and lots of little sharp teeth.Hmmm what else does that sound like?Goldeye!

[Guest]

In a power plant cooling pond somewhere near Portage, Wis., one had apparently survived several winters and grew quite large. The key there, however, is that the water temp stayed pretty warm even in winter. For the most part, I doubt they could take cold water temps over winter in Minnesota.

[Cyberfish]

There was a fish called a Pacu caught in the Mississippi that was close to 4 pounds. a pacu is a close reletive to the Pirahna, but is vegatarian. So unless you are mister potato head, you can swim in MN waters without getting devoured by small toothy fish

Cyb ><>

[DARK30]

Alright! How in the *&^%% do you spell purryanya anyway! None of these look right....Dictionary please.

I wish one of those Wells Catfish got loose here...Well, two (a boy and a girl)

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[Fish Toys]

DARK30
Looks like you spell it this way according to MS. Word?
Piranha
However it is spelled we all know what it is?
TTYL
“FISH”
www.icesaws.com

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[Crawlerman]

I've actually witnessed one being caught. It was off the Mississippi river on the Wakota acess in South Saint Paul. The guy caught it with an orange jig and a minnow along the wall. The guy took it with him, along with a few carp and said he was learning how to do taxidermy. It would have been interesting to see how the Pirranah turned out! All in all catching a tropical fish in Minnesota is not that unheard of. I've also seen someone catch an oscar. These fish often get too big for someone's aquarium; and without any common sence the person just dumps them into the nearest lake or river. They can survive the summers here; but will die off once the lake tempature drops off in the fall.

[Guest]

Cyberfish is right. They are called Pacu. They are not Pirahnas, but they definitely look alike!
I read the report of the Pacu in the rivers and, if I remember right, the DNR advised to kill the ones you catch. I guess they multiply like you wouldn't believe! I could be wrong, but that's what my (sometimes faulty) memory tells me. I think there was an article in the Star Tribune last summer on this. Maybe someone else knows more about it?

[Guest]

Here it is folks. Spelling: PIRANHA -- listed as Seerrasalmus spp. U.S. Record, 4 lbs 0 oz., caught by Richard Koeppen in New Jersey in 1993.

PACU (Colossoma) is a different species. U.S. record 11 lbs 11 oz caught by Joseph McPherson in Alabama in 1998

The fish I mentioned earlier caught near Portage, Wis., was identified as a Piranha by the WDNR.

[Crawlerman]

No.. this one had TEETH, that was for sure Wasn't that big... maybe 1/4 lb... still looked pretty nasty. Caught in the middle of summer so my guess it was just someone's pet that had been released into the river.

[TG]

I read an article in the Prior Lake news paper and seen a picture there of a fairly good size Piranha. This one was caught in Prior Lake.Happy swimming!

[Guest]

Serrasalmus nattereri
Red Bellied Pirhana
Toothy little bugger that "should" cack in cold waters. The black species was banned in the 70's as it is more adaptive.

Colossoma macropomum
Red Bellied Pacu
In the 6 to 10 inch range looks very similar to the above, vegematic, and grows way larger. I have seen them in the 15Lb class in larger tanks.

[Surface Tension]

I used to have quite a few piranha's.
Not sure of the latin name but the most popular for aquariums are the Red Brested Piranha's. They have SHARP teeth. When I bought them they were the size of my finger nail. In a 55 gal tank they grew to around 10" long. I see no reason they couldnt handle cold water like any other fish.

[jparrucci]

I don't like the thought of them in Prior Lake. I spend a few days out there on the boat each summer!!! Acutally, I've seen many shows on them on the Discover Channel, Animal Planet, ect. and a single Piranah isnt something to be worried about. Though I've seen schools of them destroy a 25 foot Anaconda in a matter of seconds. They move fast and deadly...it was mind boggling to see how fast they destroyed such a big snake. "duh na...duh na..duh na.duh nah." (jaws theme)

[TG]

Maybe if you inqiure with the Prior Lake news paper(I think it's the Laker)you might get into the archives to see and read about that fish.

Terry

[Guest]

I don't know if it's the same Pacu you are talking about but there was one caught on the Mississippi this summer that weighed 7.5 lbs. I don't remember what paper I read it in. I have a pacu in my aquarium that is about 10". It does look alot like a pirahna. Even looking at its mouth, you would think it was a parahna. Yes they are supposed to be vegetarians, I feed it carrots, grapes, blueberries, and just about any other vegetables.

My wife caught a 3" largemouth fishing for sunnies this summer. She convinced me to take it home and put it in the tank. We also put an extremely small bluegill in the tank at the same time. The bass made it 15 minutes before the Pacu bit its head off just like it was eating a candy bar. It did not bother the bluegill. The bluegill is still alive and happy. Makes me wonder if they are complete vegitarians like they say or was Pacu just protecting its territory. We have other small fish in the tank that it doesn't bother either...

[Guest]

flyingfish: Please read page 27 of the 2002 fishing regulations. Adults are not allowed to transport live fish home to an aquarium. Only a child 16 or younger can. The only way an adult can transport live fish is if they are purchased from a dealer and you have the necessary documents.
Dino

[Guest]

That's correct.....as long as they are ten inches or less someone under sixteen can transport live fish to put in an aquarium. Just because my wife was the one that wanted to keep it doesn't mean that we didn't have any kids in the boat with us.

It is also illegal to release any exotic species into any Minnesota waters.....the reason this whole topic started.

FYI that was the first largemouth that I kept or anyone in my boat has kept since I was under sixteen....

[Crawlerman]

Hmmm... that's new actually.. There was no mention of "transport of live fish" before... the Law was that you just couldn't transport a fish from one lake to another... Oh well... Unless you have a DNR officer over to your house for dinner there's really no way it can be enforced... and if thats a case just make sure you either take a kid fishing with you the day you go fishing for pets; or in the case you do have a DNR officer over for tea; get a Nephew or something over... In my opnion that is a very odd rule and doesn't make any sence on the "exception"

[Guest]

That's the way the law has always been as far as I can remember it. You cannot transport live fish. The reason as you stated is to prevent people from transplanting fish from one lake to another......good or bad.......

[DARK30]

Anybody know what the reasoning might be for not allowing a person to keep a "pet" fish?

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[cluelessfisherman]

pig_sticka - the DNR could actually make some good money on a lake like that. Put out a big dock and charge admission for a daily show when they throw a side of beef in the lake!! Heck, I would even pay to watch that!!

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Clueless - -

[Fish Toys]

pig_sticka
Global warming and a head start on tropical FISHERY?

"FISH"

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[Pig_sticka]

funny:
you are allowed to keep a limit of fish and kill them, yet you aren't allowed to keep one fish(alive) and admire it lol. i did hear of the pacu's being caught. and they are true stories for the most part. why kill them, you know what would be cool is if we made a private lake that had them in it. like a designated trout lake
who knows maybe in years to come, have a more tropical lake in minnesota.

[Valv]

I do have 3 largemouth, 2 crappies, 1 perch (other died by suicide jumping out tank) and 2 sunnies on my aquarium. All caught last winter (bass last spring) with my children.
I called DNR and asked before I did it, they stated if under 16 you can transport and keep fish as pet in aquariums, up to 4 per species (there's a list on Rules manual). Still what puzzles me, why a grown up cannot keep them but if I take my child along I can. What's the difference ?

Anyway it's great watching the little buggers swimming and eating. It's a little expensive, I have to get a scoop of crappie minnows every 3 days, and some wax worms, but I think it definitely beats keeping exotic species which don't teach much about our local environment.