Home / Environment / Goldfish Flood Ottawa Ponds: Thousands Slated for Culling
Goldfish Flood Ottawa Ponds: Thousands Slated for Culling
20 Nov
Summary
- Thousands of feral goldfish will be culled from an Ottawa stormwater pond.
- A single goldfish can lay over 100,000 eggs, rapidly increasing populations.
- Discarded pets are impacting native species and local ecosystems.
Authorities in Ottawa, Canada, are preparing to cull an estimated thousands of feral goldfish from a stormwater pond, highlighting a growing issue of invasive species across the region.
This infestation is largely attributed to pet owners releasing their goldfish into local waterways, where increasingly warm temperatures create hospitable breeding grounds. A mature female goldfish can lay upwards of 100,000 eggs, leading to exponential population growth that overwhelms native ecosystems.
These rapidly reproducing fish, which can grow to impressive sizes and have few predators, are outcompeting native species and damaging plant life by disturbing pond bottoms. Officials in both Canada and the United States are urging the public to cease releasing pet fish into natural water bodies.
