Description
Piaractus brachypomus ( Pirapatinga, Red Pacu) is frequently mistaken for a Piranha (Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus spp.), sometimes resulting in local panics (Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006).
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animalia | Chordata | Osteichthyes | Characiformes | Characidae | Piaractus |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Failed | Contracting | Introduced | Regular Resident | South America | South America | Ornamental(Pet Release) |
History of Spread
Piaractus brachypomus ( Pirapatinga, Red Pacu) is native to the Orinoco and Amazon river basins, South America (FishBase 2006). It is a common aquarium fish which grows to a large size (to 88 cm) (FishBase 2006) and probably frequently outgrows aquaria. It has been introduced to at least 12 countries, either as a food or aquarium fish, but is established only in tropical-subtropical regions, including Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan (FishBase 2006). In the United States, P. brachypomus has been collected in at least 19 states, but is not known to have reproduced in North American waters. It is unlikely to tolerate winter temperatures, except maybe in Florida and and the southernmost border regions (Logan et al. 1996).
Piaractus brachypomus has been collected at least 7 times in the Chesapeake Bay region, and at least 5 times in tidal waters. The earliest record in the watershed is from Burke Lake, a Fairfax County, Virginia reservoir in 1988. Other nontidal records are from a golf course in Calvert County, MD, and from Bynum Run Park (pond or stream?) near Bel Air, Harford County. The first tidal record is from a crabpot in Prince George's County/MD/Swan Creek, Potomac drainage, in 2001. Two specimens have been collected in the Susquehanna River, at the head of Chesapeake Bay, in 2004 and 2005, at Port Deposit MD and at Conowingo Dam (USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Program 20163). Two P. brachypomus were caught in 2010 at Joppatown MD, on the brackish lower Gunpowder River (Kennedy 2010). This species is unlikely to survive winters in the Chesapeake Bay region, except maybe in the presence of thermal effluents.
History References- Logan et al. 1996; Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006; FishBase 2006
Invasion Comments
None
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | 11.5 | |||
| Salinity (‰) | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| Oxygen | None | |||
| pH | ||||
| Salinity Range | fresh-oligo |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | ||
| Typical Longevity (yrs |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
|||
| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
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| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
|||
| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
Piaractus brachypomus ( Pirapatinga, Red Pacu) is a common aquarium fish which grows to a large size (to 88 cm) (FishBase 2006) and probably frequently outgrows aquaria, resulting in many illegal releases. It is frequently mistaken for a Piranha (Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus spp.), sometimes resulting in local panics (Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006). It cannot survive winter temperatures in the Chesapeake Bay region (Logan et al. 1996) and has no significant economic impacts. References- Logan et al. 1996; FishBase 2006; Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Piaractus brachypomus ( Pirapatinga, Red Pacu) is a common aquarium fish which grows to a large size (to 88 cm) (FishBase 2006) and probably frequently outgrows aquaria, resulting in illegal releases in at least 19 states. It is frequently mistaken for a Piranha (Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus spp.), sometimes resulting in local panics. This fish cannot tolerate low winter temperatures, and has not become established in North America (Logan et al. 1996; Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006). It has also been exported to at least 12 countries, either as an aquaculture food fish or as an aquarium fish, but is established only in tropical-subtropical regions, including Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan (FishBase 2006). References- Logan et al. 1996; FishBase 2006; Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2006
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
Piaractus brachypomus appears to be a failed introduction to the Chesapeake Bay region, since it is probably incapable of surviving winter temperatures in the region. It is likely to have no significant impacts on native biota.
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
Piaractus brachypomus appears to be a failed introduction to the Chesapeake Bay region, since it is probably incapable of surviving winter temperatures in the region. It is likely to have no significant impacts on other exotic biota.
References
2002-2024 FishBase.(World Wide Web electronic publication).. http://filaman.uni-kiel.de/search.htmlKennedy, Jim (7/23/2010) Strange catch in Joppatowne, Harford Aegis None: published online
Logan, Daniel J.; Bibles, Erin L.; Markle, Douglas F. (1996) Recent collections of exotic aquarium fishes in Oregon and thermal tolerance of Oriental Weatherfish and Piratpatinga, California Fish and Game 88: 66-80
2003-2024 Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database. Gainesville, FL. http://nas.er.usgs.gov