Changes in recreational catfish Silurus glanis harvest rates between years 1986–2017 in Central Europe

Abstract

The European catfish Silurus glanis is an important fish species in both commercial and recreational fisheries. Catfish is a spreading species that was reported to potentially benefit from increasing temperatures. The goal of this study was to estimate long-term changes in harvest rates of catfish in Central Europe. This study used individual mandatory angling logbooks collected by the Czech Fishing Union in the Czech Republic (Central Europe) over the course of years 1986-2017 (32 years) to assess harvest rates of catfish. This study discovered that harvest of catfish has been increasing over time. Moreover, rivers that previously showed zero harvested catfish are beginning to display higher harvest rates of catfish. Increasing average air temperature and angling effort in the study area have positively affected harvest rates of catfish. The increased harvest of catfish could not be reliably explained by intensive fish stocking. In conclusion, while other studies show that many fish species are negatively affected by human activities and therefore show decreased harvest rates, catfish angling seems to benefit from anthropogenic changes.

Spoiled for Choice during Cold Season? Habitat Use and Potential Impacts of the Invasive Silurus glanis L. in a Deep, Large, and Oligotrophic Lake (Lake Maggiore, North Italy)

“…However, in a few years, the total catfish harvest quintuplicated, and so did its proportional contribution to the total fish harvest (from 3.2% in 2016 to 12.5% in 2020), indicating that commercial fisheries may benefit from harvesting catfish. This is not surprising given that the importance of S. glanis for both recreational and professional angling is increasingly recognized [13] and that catfish populations in their native range cannot reach a carrying capacity due to the high angling pressure [15,48]. However, our data showed that the fish harvest in Lake Maggiore is dominated by those species that were also most consumed by catfish, like coregonids.…”

“…An example of a successful invader in freshwaters able to establish into novel habitat types is represented by the European catfish Silurus glanis L., a large-bodied fish naturally distributed in large freshwater ecosystems of eastern Europe and western Asia [12]. Thanks to its fast growth and the large body size reached, S. glanis is highly appreciated among anglers [13] and is an important resource in aquaculture [14], and this has led to its voluntary introduction into different areas, both within and outside Europe [12,15]. In western and southern Europe, it has established self-sustained populations, raising conservation concerns due to its top-predator position and opportunistic feeding behavior [12,15].…”

Spoiled for Choice during Cold Season? Habitat Use and Potential Impacts of the Invasive <em>Silurus glanis</em> L. in a Deep, Large and Oligotrophic Lake (Lake Maggiore, North Italy)

“…However, in a few years, the total catfish harvest has quintuplicated and so has been its proportional contribution to the total fish harvest (from 3.2 % in 2016 to 12.5 % in 2020), indicating that commercial fisheries may benefit from harvesting catfish. This is not surprising given that the importance of S. glanis for both recreational and professional angling is increasingly recognized [13] and that catfish populations in their native range can't reach carrying capacity due to high angling pressure [15,35]. However, our data, showed that the fish harvest in Lake Maggiore is dominated by those species that were also most consumed by catfish like coregonids.…”

“…An example of successful invader in freshwaters able to establish into novel habitat types is represented by the European catfish Silurus glanis L., a large-bodied fish naturally distributed in large freshwater ecosystems of eastern Europe and western Asia [12]. Thanks to its fast growth and the large body size reached, S. glanis is highly appreciated among anglers [13] and is an important resource in aquaculture [14] and this have led to its voluntary introduction into different areas, both within and outside Europe [12,15]. In western and southern Europe, it has established self-sustained populations rising conservation concerns due to its top-predator position and opportunistic feeding behavior [12,15].…”

Technical and financial feasibility for intensification of the extensive shrimp farming area in Mekong Delta, Vietnam

“…States (Boyd & Tucker, 1998) and in Europe (Lyach, 2020;Lyach & Remr, 2019;Pascual-Fernández et al, 2019).…”