Invasive snakehead capable of breathing on land captured in Missouri

It happened again. The Missouri Department of Conservation has confirmed that another invasive snakehead has been captured and that this unwanted invader can also survive on the land.

This is an evil predatory fish that is not native to Missouri, but the Department of Conservation has confirmed that another fish was caught at the Wappapello Lake spillway in Wayne County, Missouri , May 25.

The northern snakehead fish (Channa argus) is a fish, but it looks and behaves like a snake as well. It is native to China, Russia and North and South Korea. It has no place in the United States, but it’s certainly gaining a foothold here now and it’s a big deal. It feeds on fish native to Missouri and can reproduce quickly.

It can also crawl onto land and exist there for a period of time before having to return to the water.

The Missouri Department of Conservation says if you catch an invasive snakehead, kill him by cutting off his head and separate it from the body, empty it and put it in a plastic bag then contact the service and alert them where you found it. DO NOT throw it into water. This fish poses a danger to all fish native to Missouri and will chase them away and also compete for the resources they depend on.

The presence of a fourth snakehead in Missouri is bad news for the state’s ecosystem. Now that they are here, it will be difficult to capture and kill them all.