Monsterwelse conquer Germany: climate change makes giant grow!

Monsterwelse conquer Germany: climate change makes giant grow!

Wels, Österreich - In recent years, a certain “monsterwels” causes a lot of excitement in German waters. These impressive predatory fish are taking on ever larger dimensions due to climate change. Professor Robert Arlinghaus from the Leibniz Institute for Water Ecology and Inland Fisheries explains that catfish can grow between 30 and 40 cm in length in the first years of life and sometimes live over 30 years. This contributes to your remarkable size. A catfish of over two meters in length is no longer the exception in the current discussion, but rather the rule. The most recent record in Bavaria added up to a proud 2.81 meters and thus represented the largest documented length in Germany. Another copy of 2.45 meters was caught in the Elbe, and the new mass phenomenon is related to increasing water temperatures, which accelerates the metabolism and the food intake of the fish, as the German fishing association reports and underlines Wels population in Germany is steadily increasing, which not only attracts attention, but also indicates a possible destabilization of domestic fish stocks.

The preference of these fish for warm, slowly flowing water has caused them to spread in areas where they were once not at home. Originally native to warmer countries such as Hungary and Romania, they are now also widespread in the waters of Germany and in southern Europe. With the increasingly warmer temperatures, you have the perfect basis for growth, which makes you the big winners of climate change. Experts estimate that this catfish could theoretically even live up to five meters long and 200 years old, which gives them considerable competitiveness in food intake and reproduction. An alarming discovery shows that these large fish are even able to eat water birds like ducks, which shows how versatile their diet is. A particularly impressive example was a catfish that was caught in the mouth with a red -cheeked turtle.

consequences for domestic waters

But what does that mean for the environment and other fish species? The increasing WELS population displaces smaller fish species and destabilizes the natural balance in the waters. This has not only consequences for biodiversity, but also for the ecosystems as a whole. The increasing water temperatures that contribute to the growth of the catfish are not without consequences, since they can also affect the living conditions of many other animal species. In theory, anglers and water managers should take care of the regulation of this oversized catfish, to protect the domestic fish stocks. Many fishing associations are aware of this challenge and take measures, such as the obligation to utilize captured catfish in certain regions.

In Czech waters, the importance of undisturbed habitats for the growth of fish became impressively visible. A rescue operation in a reservoir after 40 years without fishing showed a huge amount of fishing, including large catfish. These examples demonstrate the urgent influence of fishing methods and human interventions on water ecosystems.

For further information on the effects of climate change on the Wels population, read more at mdr , vda and aquaculture .