Hundreds of meat eating fish that are usually only found in China are living in a pond in Maryland, where a pet owner dumped them. There?s concern these will continue to multiply until they wipe out the native species of fish. The Snakehead grows to be 3 feet long and has a big appetite. If they can?t find enough other fish to eat, they can climb out of the water and walk short distances on land using their fins in order to find food.
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A lifesaving chemical which is used to make upholstery flame-resistant, pentaBDE (penta bromo diphenyl ether), has turned up in water supplies and even in breast milk.
Freshwater fish in Virginia have been found to contain the highest reported levels in the world. It?s showing up in animals and humans around the globe. PentaBDE has also been found in sewage sludge that is spread on farmland across the United States.
It?s been linked to behavioral problems in laboratory animals, but little is known about its effects on humans. In one Swedish study, 10 day old mice that were given large doses of the two major chemicals in commercial pentaBDE showed permanent disturbances in their behavior, memory and learning.
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Mysterious Fish Deaths Around the World
We recently reported that hundreds of dead fish are washing up on the shores of Lake Erie in the U.S. Now we?ve learned that an official investigation in Kuwait has been unable to determine the cause of death of 1,000 tons of fish washed up on its shores. Environment officials have suggested that a heat wave which has sent water temperatures soaring might be to blame.
The government responded to the sudden influx of dead fish by imposing a ban on fishing in Kuwaiti waters and setting up a committee to examine the issue. But the committee has failed to discover the cause of the phenomenon. ?A thousand tons of dead fish have been found [since mid-August],? the committee reported.
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Ecological problems in coastal waters are nothing new?they began thousands of years ago when primitive peoples fished so heavily that marine environments became ecologically unbalanced and remain that way today.
By examining ancient garbage mounds, sediment deposits and archeological records, scientists found that excessive hunting of sea mammals, turtles and fish upset delicate webs of life on a scale never before realized. The report uses research from dozens of coastal ecosystems from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
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