Abstract
The Nile perch was introduced to Lake Victoria, Africa in 1954 to counteract the drastic drop in native fish stocks caused by overfishing (Lowe 2000). ¨They originally comprised 80% of the total fish biomass in Lake Victoria, but have now decreased to less than 1% offish catches from the Kenyan waters of the lake¨ (Lowe 2000). A 2003 study in the journal Nature examined algae records from the bottom of Lake Tanganyika and found that over the last century, warming waters have driven down the lake’s fish yield by 30 percent (Achieng 2006). ¨The flesh of Nile perch is oiler than that of the local fish, so more trees were felled to fuel fires to dry the catch¨ (Lowe 2000). The fishermen of Lake Victoria have adjusted to this ecological shift by using large-meshed nets to catch Nile perch, which has become the most important species when it comes to the income of that area (Lowe 2000).
Historical Background …show more content…
A large-mouthed fish, the Nile perch ranges in color from green to brown on its upper half and a silver color on its’ lower half and grows up to a massive 6 foot long and a whopping 300 pounds (Rafferty 2008). It has an elongated body, a protruding lower jaw, a rounded tail, and two dorsal fins. The Nile perch occurs naturally in the tropical region of the African continent in the major rivers of the Nile, Congo, Volta, Niger, and Senegal Rivers. The taxonomic status Victoria populations is uncertain. The large fish was introduced to Lake Victoria in the late 1950s and early 1960s from the shallow waters of Lake Albert and Lake Turkana (McDonnel 2015). Although not necessarily conspecific with L. niloticus, the Lake Victoria Lates have always been referred to as L. niloticus (Lowe 2000). Various introductions of the Nile being brought into non-native bodies of water resulted in the fish flourishing (Achieng
The Nile perch was introduced to Lake Victoria, Africa in 1954 to counteract the drastic drop in native fish stocks caused by overfishing (Lowe 2000). ¨They originally comprised 80% of the total fish biomass in Lake Victoria, but have now decreased to less than 1% offish catches from the Kenyan waters of the lake¨ (Lowe 2000). A 2003 study in the journal Nature examined algae records from the bottom of Lake Tanganyika and found that over the last century, warming waters have driven down the lake’s fish yield by 30 percent (Achieng 2006). ¨The flesh of Nile perch is oiler than that of the local fish, so more trees were felled to fuel fires to dry the catch¨ (Lowe 2000). The fishermen of Lake Victoria have adjusted to this ecological shift by using large-meshed nets to catch Nile perch, which has become the most important species when it comes to the income of that area (Lowe 2000).
Historical Background …show more content…
A large-mouthed fish, the Nile perch ranges in color from green to brown on its upper half and a silver color on its’ lower half and grows up to a massive 6 foot long and a whopping 300 pounds (Rafferty 2008). It has an elongated body, a protruding lower jaw, a rounded tail, and two dorsal fins. The Nile perch occurs naturally in the tropical region of the African continent in the major rivers of the Nile, Congo, Volta, Niger, and Senegal Rivers. The taxonomic status Victoria populations is uncertain. The large fish was introduced to Lake Victoria in the late 1950s and early 1960s from the shallow waters of Lake Albert and Lake Turkana (McDonnel 2015). Although not necessarily conspecific with L. niloticus, the Lake Victoria Lates have always been referred to as L. niloticus (Lowe 2000). Various introductions of the Nile being brought into non-native bodies of water resulted in the fish flourishing (Achieng