Nile Perch in Lake Victoria

Posted by Douglas DuHamel Nov 12, 2007

In the 1950s, Nile Perch was introduced to Lake Victoria though research has not said if it was intentional.

These fish can grow to 6 feet in length and weigh up to 500 pounds. It provides food for starving nations and has created a thriving fishing industry. This sounds good.

The native fish to Lake Victoria are all of the cichlid species and grow to a maximum of a foot long and weigh no more than two pounds. Before the Nile Perch arrived, it was a balanced system allowing hundreds of species to live together.

In nature, the strongest will always survive. This is what happened in Lake Victoria. Approximately 400 natural species have disappeared from the lake and will never be seen again. These species were some of the most brilliant and colourful fish in the world. Now there are approximately 100 species remaining.

Worst of all; our kids will never see these beautiful fish. This is a tragedy. The Nile Perch population is starting to dwindle due to over fishing. To the fishing industry, this is a serious concern. Environmentalists should be happy that there is less of these fish in Lake Victoria.

It’s too late, the damage has been done. Once a win-lose situation has become a loss for both sides.