Malaysia’s ‘fish hunters’ goal invasive species, one catch at a time | Atmosphere Information

Puchong, Malaysia – On a latest Sunday morning, a couple of dozen males with fishing nets skirted the rubbish-strewn banks of the Klang River simply exterior the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.

Surveying the river, the boys forged their nets into the polluted water. The nets billowed open and sunk rapidly below the load of steel chains.

From the place they stood on the riverbank, they began to drag of their nets, already crammed with dozens of squirming black-bodied catfish.

“You don’t see every other fish. Solely these,” stated Mohamad Haziq A Rahman, the chief of Malaysia’s “overseas fish hunter squad”, as they emptied their catch of wriggling suckermouth catfish into piles, away from the river.

Not one of the fish caught that morning had been bought at close by markets or meals stalls. The only real objective of the expedition was to cull suckermouth catfish, one amongst a rising variety of invasive species which have in latest many years dominated freshwater habitats throughout Southeast Asia.

As soon as introduced in for business or hobbyist causes, invasive fish will not be solely threatening to edge native species out of the meals chain in Malaysia and elsewhere, however in addition they unfold illnesses and trigger nice injury to native environments.

Invasive fish are an issue the world over, however specialists say the difficulty is keenly felt in mega-biodiverse Malaysia.

“Greater than 80 % of rivers within the Klang Valley have been invaded by overseas fish species, which may trigger the extinction of the rivers’ indigenous aquatic life,” stated Dr Kalithasan Kailasam, a river knowledgeable with the Malaysia-based International Atmosphere Centre.

“It’s rising in virtually all different primary rivers in Malaysia,” stated Kailasam, explaining how species such because the suckermouth have the potential to rapidly reproduce and survive in soiled water, leaving native fish on the shedding facet.

Other than the suckermouth, Malaysia’s waterways at the moment are threatened by species such because the aggressive peacock bass, Javanese carp and redtail catfish, he stated.

Whereas the total extent of the issue isn’t but recognized, Malaysia’s fisheries division, after a four-year research till 2024, discovered invasive species in 39 areas throughout practically each state in peninsular Malaysia and on the island of Labuan, together with in dams, lakes and main rivers.

Alarmed by the risk, a small group of residents banded collectively to combat the aquatic invaders.

Led by Haziq, they’re working to reclaim Malaysia’s rivers one fin at a time.

Invasive fish invasion

The citizen fish hunters’ quest to combat invasive species began throughout the nation’s COVID-19 lockdowns, when Haziq, a former healthcare marketing consultant, turned to fishing as a pastime in a river close to his home in central Selangor state. He discovered each fish he caught was of the suckermouth selection, often known as the “pleco” or “ikan bandaraya” – which interprets because the “janitor fish” in Malay and is favoured by hobbyists to maintain aquariums clear, because the suckermouth feeds on algae, leftover meals and useless fish.

Native to South America, styles of the suckermouth have additionally been launched into waterways in america, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, typically when house owners dump them into rivers, canals, dams or free them after they develop too massive for his or her aquarium tanks.

Due to their thick, scaly pores and skin, suckermouths are normally prevented by even bigger predators in Malaysia, and might develop to about half a metre (1.6ft) in size.

As backside feeders, the catfish have been recognized to eat the eggs of different species and destroy their nesting websites. Catfish additionally burrow into riverbanks to nest, inflicting them to erode and collapse, which is a critical environmental concern in flood-prone Malaysia the place year-end monsoon winds convey heavy rain.

Malaysia’s central financial institution stated in 2024 that floods are the reason for 85 % of the nation’s pure disasters, with their frequency rising since 2020.­

Although removed from his favorite fish to catch, Haziq found that suckerfish roe could possibly be used as bait for different greater fish, and he earned some cash promoting their eggs to different fishing fanatics. He additionally gained a following by placing his exploits on social media. Additional analysis then led him to study concerning the threats posed by invasive species.

Harziq began to draw like-minded anglers, and, in 2022, they determined to type a bunch for looking suckermouth, assembly practically each week in a river to hold out a cull.

Their public profile and recognition are rising. The group’s membership has now grown to greater than 1,000, and it has a robust fan following on social media.

“Individuals stored asking methods to be part of our group, as a result of we had been wanting on the ecosystem,” Haziq stated.

Focusing first on Malaysia’s Selangor state and rivers within the capital Kuala Lumpur, the fish hunter squad netted practically 31 tonnes of suckermouths alone in 2024. They’ve additionally visited rivers in different states in Malaysia as their marketing campaign expands.

Dispose, use for analysis, or prepare dinner and eat?

Throughout a hunt within the Klang River earlier this yr, Haziq and his comrades deployed to the river’s banks on a mission to see what number of suckermouth they may catch throughout a single outing.

However trying to find invasive fish might be difficult. With out boats, the hunters need to wade into the fast-moving polluted waters from muddy banks, whereas navigating underwater particles corresponding to garbage on the riverbed.

Virtually all of the fish they caught had been of the invasive variety, however every so often, they do internet an area.

“Haruan (snakehead)!” shouted ex-navy diver Syuhaily Hasibullah, 46, as he confirmed off a small fish half the dimensions of his arm, taken from a internet containing a number of suckermouths.

“This one is uncommon! There was a whole lot of them within the river,” he instructed Al Jazeera.

Haziq stated if the hunters discovered many invasive species of their nets, they’d organise one other outing to the identical location, bringing alongside extra folks to participate.

The day they got down to calculate what number of invasive fish they may catch in a single outing turned out to yield half a tonne of suckermouth in simply three hours – so many they needed to stuff them into sacks.

Beforehand, the hunters buried their hauls in deep holes away from the river. Now, they’ve discovered extra artistic methods to dispose of what’s, typically, an undesirable fish.

On the occasion earlier this yr, sacks of suckermouths had been handed over to an area entrepreneur seeking to experiment with turning the fish right into a type of charcoal often known as biochar.

Some native universities have additionally began researching the doable use of the suckermouth. One college analysis article explored the potential of suckermouth collagen for pharmaceutical use, whereas one other thought of its use as fertiliser and even as a kind of leather-based.

On some events, the hunters even eat the fish they catch, although that relies on which river they’ve been taken from.

Whereas redtail or African catfish are thought of delicacies by some, the suckermouth, additionally recognized in India as “satan fish”, is a much less engaging snacking possibility – however not out of the query with regards to a fast riverside grill.

“If the fish is from the Klang River, we don’t eat it,” Mohd Zulkifli Mokhtar instructed Al Jazeera, earlier than dozens of hunters broke their quick throughout the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

“But when it’s from the Langat River, it’s nonetheless OK,” Zulkifli stated, as dozens of suckermouth caught within the much less polluted Langat River, situated in Bangi some 25km (16 miles) south of Kuala Lumpur, had been gutted, marinated in satay and grilled on skewers.

Research from Bangladesh and Indonesia have discovered styles of catfish with excessive ranges of heavy metals and contaminants. A 2024 article by Malaysia’s Universiti Teknologi Mara cited a research that confirmed the extent of contaminants within the suckermouth was “closely influenced by the extent of air pollution within the river”.

‘If we don’t act now, it will be worse’

Whereas Malaysia’s fisheries division stated there have been no information of native species turning into endangered due to invasive ones, native fish however face threats.

Native fish both confronted turning into prey or have needed to combat to outlive, with the division discovering in a survey that 90 % of the fish in six rivers within the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur area had been now overseas arrivals.

The division’s Director-Normal Adnan Hussain stated varied measures had been put in place, together with the discharge of some 33.6 million native fish and prawns into rivers nationwide from 2021 to 2025 to “stability the affect” of invasive fish.

Late final yr, the state authorities of Selangor additionally got here up with a scheme to pay anglers one Malaysian ringgit ($0.23) for each kilogramme (2.2lb) of the suckermouth fish faraway from two rivers. The captured fish had been to be was animal feed and natural fertiliser, an official stated.

Restrictions on the import of sure overseas aquatic species – together with whole species and teams – into Malaysia had been additionally imposed final yr, and he added that programmes and collaboration with the fish hunters had additionally helped to cope with the issue.

In a single river in Selangor state, Adnan stated the quantity of invasive fish caught following one eradication programme had dropped from 600kg (1,300lb) in a Might 2024 occasion to only greater than 150kg (330lb) 4 or 5 months later.

Nevertheless, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu fish researcher Professor Amirrudin Ahmad stated it was “virtually inconceivable” to totally exterminate the nation’s invasive fish.

“So many species reside in (native water our bodies) and eliminating invasive species by the technique of poisoning the water isn’t possible in any respect,” he stated, including there have been near 80 recorded fish species launched in Malaysia up to now.

He additional warned that rising temperatures attributable to local weather change could even permit species just like the predatory Mekong redtail catfish to proliferate in cooler upstream waters in Malaysia.

“They’re right here to remain,” Amirrudin stated.

“It’s merely,” he stated, “that the surroundings is generally much like their native nation, or these species are extremely adaptable.”

That that is an ecological conflict that may by no means really be gained is some extent that Haziq and his fellow fish hunters are absolutely conscious of. Practically each river they visited in latest occasions had virtually nothing however invasive fish, he stated.

However their mission will keep on, he added, together with the looking and public consciousness that has spurred 1000’s to comply with his social media movies on the topic.

“Sure, this fish gained’t be fully gone from our rivers,” he instructed Al Jazeera.

“But when we don’t act now, it will be worse,” he stated.

“It’s higher to take motion than to only depart it alone,” he added.

“No less than we will scale back the inhabitants, than permit it to fully take over our native fish.”