Toothy Amazon type critter caught in Catawba River!

[TriAngler]

This will surely curtail the skinny dippin' for a while...

N.C. fisherman reels in a piranha


Jerry Melton holds a piranha July 2, 2007, which he recently caught in the Catawba River, in Mount Holly, N.C. The catch highlights the growing problem of people keeping exotic animals and fish as pets and later dumping them into local waters, said Paul Barrington, an ichthyologist with the Fort Fisher Aquarium. (AP Photo/The Charlotte Observer, Travis Dove)

MOUNT HOLLY, N.C. - A fisherman looking to catch a catfish for dinner instead reeled in a fish that flashed its teeth and bit his knife. Jerry Melton, 46, was fishing in the Catawba River last week when he caught what state wildlife officials later identified as a piranha, a South American carnivorous fish that lives in freshwater.

"When I got it on the bank I didn't really know what it was; I hadn't seen anything like it before," Melton said.

When Melton opened the fish's mouth with a pocketknife, he said the fish bit down and left an impression on the blade.

Wildlife officials told Melton on Saturday that he caught a 1 pound, 4 ounce piranha that was probably dumped in the river. Melton was fishing in Mount Holly, a town northwest of Charlotte.

The catch highlights the growing problem of people keeping exotic animals and fish as pets and later dumping them into local waters, said Paul Barrington, an ichthyologist with the Fort Fisher Aquarium. Earlier this year, another fisherman caught a snakehead fish — also a nonnative fish — in Lake Wylie near Charlotte.

"Releasing nonnative fish in our native waters is highly irresponsible because it could have a very adverse affect on the fish in that ecosystem," Barrington said. "Piranha and the snakehead fish have no predators in our waters."

Jacob Rash, a North Carolina Wildlife Resources biologist, said he believes the piranha was the first caught in the Catawba River and possibly the first in the region.

Melton, who is keeping the piranha in his freezer until he can have it mounted, said the experience will keep him out of the river's water.

"I've been fishing there my whole life," he said. "Catching something like that is definitely going to make me think twice about what's in that water."

Information from: The Charlotte Observer, http://www.charlotte.com

[gradywhite273]

nice , real nice, just what i want swimmin around my toes.

[Jer]

I would like to catch a piranha

[brandon558]

hmm cool stuff. Itd hurt if that ******* bit down on your toes.

Thanks for sharing

Brandon

[LuckyLady]

I would like to catch a piranha

I am with Jer but I still wouldn't want that thing swimming around my toes

[hotrodmarlin]

My skinny dipping days are over!

[shoefish]

My skinny dipping days are over!

I think we can all be thankful for that

[hotrodmarlin]

ha ha - Yeah but I can still walk the bank..

[trollman]

My skinny dipping days are over!

from now i am peeing into the scuppers too, no more hanging it overboard in that river.

[Flatdog]

quote jer I would like to catch a piranha
Jer just get over to the Pantanal Posada du Picheing, fish a cast, plus some big peacock bass, or if you are feeling adventurous aim for a small town called sao Felix do arague, (i think i spelled that right) the arague river is about 10 miles wide at that point, lookup a man called Julio canna, runs a 20 foot Aluminum boat with a 90 on the back knows all the spots, its 10 days boat ride from the amazon main river I think you can catch a small plane into the village now. though when i went it was on horse for the last 100 miles!! different anyway its on your door step so to speak