Umaisar Gull Ganie
Srinagar, May 11: The Jammu and Kashmir Lake Conservation and Management Authority (LCMA) during an ongoing cleaning of Dal Lake on Thursday for the first time discovered a rare kind of fish which is said to be an “Alligator Gar” fish, said an official.
Known for their crocodile-like head and razor-sharp teeth, Alligator Gar fish is a native to North America.
Masood Ahmad, an expert from J&K LCMA’s research and monitoring department said that they are going to conduct the analysis of the discovered fish with the help of fisheries and SKUAST’s fisheries department.
“We are going to seek the help from the fisheries department and SKUAST-K, so as to find out the effects of this type of fish on our existing fish species inside the Dal Lake,” he said.
The official said that during the normal de-weeding routine in Dal Lake, they found a rare kind of fish on the conveyor, saying the sighting of the rare fish was the first of its kind.
Videos of the rare fish went viral on social media with netizens expressing their surprise.
Dr Farooz Ahmad Bhat, dean at the Faculty of Fisheries, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Science and Technology (SKUAST) Kashmir confirmed the fish seen in the Dal Lake is an Alligator Gar fish.
He said the fish is not harmful but they don’t have any research on it and it has been found for the first time in the lake.
He said grass carp fish were seen in Dal Lake and Manasbal in 2016.
Ferooz said proper research will be done on how it reached Kashmir as it is dangerous for the local fish varieties in Kashmir.
