A KENAI LAKE HAS THIS BAD BOY FISH, AND IT’S NOT GOOD
You thought the goldfish invasion at the Cuddy Park pond was bad. And the pike that have shown up in waterways in Southcentral Alaska have bounties on their heads.
Now someone has introduced “Son of Pike.”
Muskies, a non-native species, were recently discovered in a lake on the Kenai Peninsula. These fish are voracious eaters of salmon and salmon fry. They are monsters and they’ve been found in various age groups, which means the fish have been reproducing, according to sources familiar with the problem.
Muskies are highly predatory and aggressive fighters for sport fishermen in the Lower 48. The only way they could have reached a lake on the Kenai Peninsula is if someone imported them, because the closest native population of this fish is on the other side of the Rocky Mountains in Canada — a completely different drainage.
Import of non-native series is illegal, but is still only a misdemeanor. Importing a voracious predator like muskies?
There is a special place in hell for whoever did that, as they could destroy salmon runs on the Kenai.
Update: Fish and Game says the muskies have been eradicated from the lake and the department says it may never know who brought them into Alaska. No further action is expected.
