What to do with exotic fish?

Kill them!

We are currently "battling" the infamous "Snake head" fish from Asia in US waters. The Snakehead breeds quicker, grows faster, can "walk/wriggle" it's way across to other lakes /ponds and has NO PREDATORS!

It also breathes air!

I have caught Knife-fish, Cichlids & Tilapia and although they are no longer considered "intrusive" to our FLA environs they still impact the breeding & growth of our native Bass, Brim, Crappie, Etc.

If I catch one, I Kill it! They are non-native fish that will (over time) devastate any/all populations of Bass, Bluegill, Sunfish, Cats, Etc.

In other words, the Tilapia I've caught always "make it to the table".

As to WHAT to do with them after eliminated?

Use them as nutrient's for your garden. Chums a good idea! Start "crabbing" and use them as bait. Tilapia are actually very tasty!

I liked Roxcy's idea about giving them away to Animal shelters or Marine institutes.

Whatever you do make sure they are "deceased" before letting them go into another waterway!

I just watched a TV program about the Snakehead from Asia. If we don't "watch out" there won't be any more "cool" Bass tourneys. We will have Snakehead tourneys in the future!

Google "Snakehead fish" and read about it yourself.

Good fishing!

UPDATE: Fishingidiot- "Exotic" species of ANY type of animal/insect/aquatic/Etc can and WILL "kill off" native species and "over-run" the environment. The reason they are able to do this is because they are not natural to the environment and have no "enemys".

Case in point-- Cichlids/Knife-fish/Tilapia have begun to over-run native fish habitat and slowly "take over" lakes & streams in South FLA. This means eventually NO MORE BASS, CRAPPIE, BLUEGILL, ETC. The exotics are 3 times more aggresive, can reproduce quicker, and if left "unchecked" would "kill-off" all native species.

Can you imagine going Bass-fishing & only being able to catch Tilapia or Cichlids?

Intrusive exotic species are SUPER dangerous to ANY environment! Look up "Zebra mussel"!

Find someone who has large carnivorous turtles or even LEGAL CAPTIVE crocodilians (responsible owners, of course... if you were closer to central Fl, I know people.)

DO NOT throw deceased fish into the water... this is what the state refers to as "incidental feeding" when it comes to alligators. Just because you're not giving the fish directly to the gator doesn't mean it won't eventually start associating people with food... {begin alligator thought train} "Hey, every time someone comes with one of those long sticks, I get easy food." {end alligator thought train} 95% of alligator attacks on people are linked to feeding.

Ok, done preaching, and I'm not sure how bad the nuisance alligator problem is in your area, but they're thick here.

Anyway, people who keep critters that like fish are usually willing to take a fresh catch. Key word is fresh, no one wants to take stinky fish... usually.

Use them for fertilizer...

Or for live-trap bait for pesky feral cats or raccoons or opossums or hey, why not nile monitors or water monitors, those are all over the place too...

Or you can hide them in vehicles of people you don't like...

All kinds of fun things... get creative!

hehe

You could check with local churches or other groups to see if anyone in your area is in need of food. I'm sure that an underprivileged family would love a a freezer full of fish.

You could find out if anyone with marine animals like a marine park in your area would allow you to come and give the animals a treat. Or, you could see if the local animal shelter would let you feed them to the homeless cats and dogs. It's a long-shot but it's an idea.

Darn Tilapia. They are everywhere now. We even have them here in Australia. They breed faster than rabbits, so it's good you're not putting them back. They have been declared a noxious fish in Aust., so it's illegal to throw them back in the water (not that anyone would want to).

What I would do if I was in your situation is to just keep them all in big buckets and go and dump them somewhere out of town and away from the place you go fishing. That way, you're still getting rid of them, and no-one will be able to smell them since they won't be near people.

Hope that helps.

Fish once a week, bring a large keep net with you and make a deal with your local fishmonger to sell them.

i have a nice pond behind my house & it is getting over ran with oscars & cicylids.

When i catch them, i use them for fertlizer in my garden.

good for the plants, plentiful & cheap

eat them talapia is a food fish good tasting

What? Do you not believe in catch and release? You can take the hook out of their mouth and throw them back in. Just because you catch them doesn't mean you HAVE to kill them and keep them. Learn how to take them off the hook withOUT damaging them. Sure it takes a bit more time than just yanking the hook out, but then you don't waste so many fishie lives. Release the ones you don't want or can't use and keep the ones you do want. Don't waste.

By the way...I fish, my mom and daughters all fish, and they hunt, too...I'm not an anti.

Also the fish you release today gets older, wiser and BIGGER....that's where the record fish come from!

I agree with Molly.

Why can't you just Catch and release fish?

Its not that hard, is it?