Introduced Species: What Species Do You Have and How Do You Know?

The introduction of fishes, whether of foreign origin or from one part of North America to another, has been part of fisheries management for much of the past century, some introductions dating well back into the nineteenth century. Federal, state, and provincial agencies, along with aquaculture facilities and private aquarists, have all played important roles in this history. In recent decades there have been many unauthorized introductions via a rapidly increasing number of pathways, some of which are difficult to control. One very large problem in dealing with introduced fish is the inability of many fishery biologists and managers to identify native fishes in their jurisdictions, recognize introduced species, and appreciate the management problems that might result. Proper management cannot be done by those who have little knowledge of systematic ichthyology and who are thus unable to identify the fishes they are dealing with, be they native or introduced. I suggest a solution to some of these problems and recommend a curriculum change to better train future fishery biologists and managers.