Comments on: Invasive Species:

By: admin

admin — Sat, 14 Feb 2015 14:17:44 +0000

Thanks for the comment. These fish have become a problem here in Florida and are very, very abundant. I’ve had several people tell me they’re really good eating, but as of now, I still let those people, and as you say, the osprey enjoy them with no pressure from me at all! Lol

By: Robert Goldberg

Robert Goldberg — Wed, 11 Feb 2015 19:08:48 +0000

Thank you for solving a mystery of several years’ standing. I found one of these, partly eaten, under an osprey’s nest and it looked like a prehistoric fish.

By: admin

admin — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 12:29:05 +0000

I agree totally. Fish living in muddied waters, to me, taste pretty strong. Sounds pretty crazy, but if FISH, taste real FISHY…I tend to back off! Thanks for stopping by!

By: John Ru

John Ru — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 13:07:03 +0000

My Father-in-law was from Guyana, and every Good Friday Curried Hassa was on the Menu. I love almost curried anything, but this was not a favorite.
I believe it needed more time living in clean water before using for dinner. Similar to catfish and carp.
Tasted like muck.

By: Kunoichi

Kunoichi — Wed, 04 May 2011 08:12:21 +0000

Oh my Goodness! Armour plated catfish?!?! What fascinating looking creatures! I just can’t imagine eating one. *L*

I love it when something I read triggers memories. The first thing that popped into my mind when I read “armour plated catfish” – especially after you mentioned new species being introduced to combat previously introduced invaders – was my favourite invasive species, the pleco. We’ve got one of these in our aquarium. His name is Boris, and he’s about 10 inches long now. We had no idea how big these guys could grow, but the type we’ve got has plating on the sides that reminds me a lot of that armoured catfish you’ve got a picture of, though the pattern is completely different. I guess they’re one of those fish that can grow as big as their space allows. I saw one that topped 2 feet in length at a pet store last year.

You reminded me of another another invader we “met” many years ago. We were living in Victoria, on Vancouver Island (in British Columbia) and went to an event featuring the local flora and fauna. They had aquariums with various plants and swimmers, and in one they a Goliath tadpole. The African Goliath frogs get sold as pets. Unfortunately, some people decide to get rid of their pets by dumping them, and thats what people think happened in Elk Lake on Vancouver Island – that enough people dumped their pet Goliath frogs that they could start mating. Because of the colder climate the tadpoles, which normally take 2 years to mature, take 3 years to mature in chilly Elk Lake. The guy at the display was telling us about some of the problems these giant tadpoles were causing. He was saying how, sometimes you’d see a mother duck with her ducklings swimming along behind her when suddenly *bloop* one of the ducklings would disappear. Yes, these tadpoles are big enough to grab ducklings from underneath and eat them! They were decimating the waterfowl populations.

Bonnie, I’m afraid I live too far north to know much about okra of any kind! That’s one of those “exotic” foods that shows up once in a rare while in our grocery stores, but we don’t have the climate for. *L*

Oh, after reading this post, I just wanted to say how much I love the way you guys turn a phrase. I love the BB on a razor blade comment. Your writing is an absolute delight to read! I feel like I’m sitting next to you, hearing you talk.

By: Bonnie Hollingsworth

Bonnie Hollingsworth — Tue, 03 May 2011 18:18:15 +0000

Yep! We’re never too old to learn something new! I didn’t know the name of it, but I knew there was a nuisance tree in or near the ‘Glades. Never heard of and armor-plated catfish, but did see a white “walking catfish” one time near Myakka River State Park in Florida. Now, I’ve learned a lot of new things from you today, also. That’s a good thing! Do either you or Kunoichi know the history of Cowhorn Okra? I’m getting ready to plant some because I’m told it’s an old, old variety that is open-field pollinated, and I want to save the seeds. Anybody know of a cucumber that is worthy of saving the seeds?

Great column, Dub. Keep up the good work, pal, even though I know for a fact that Deb has you pegged pretty good!