RM1 per kilo bounty on ‘ikan bandaraya’

Good catch: Suckermouth catfish being unloaded at a recent invasive species hunt organised by the Selangor Fisheries Department.

KUALA LUMPUR: Fishing enthusiasts can now fish for a good cause as the Selangor government will pay RM1 for every kilogramme of suckermouth catfish (Hypostomus plecostomus), locally known as “ikan bandaraya”, caught.

From Sept 1 to Oct 1, these fish caught in Selangor’s waterways can be brought to a designated location in exchange for the reward, said Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari.

“The invasive species has invaded nearly all rivers as well as lakes and mining ponds in the Klang Valley.

“It is threatening the existing ecosystem and affecting our native fish species,” he said during the state-level World Water Day celebration in Pandan Perdana yesterday.

State infrastructure and agriculture committee chairman Izham Hashim said that the location for the drop-off point would be revealed soon.

The Fisheries Department has released more than 1.11 million native fish into rivers over the past five years to combat the issue.So far, four operations have been initiated this year, resulting in the release of 218,000 native river species, including freshwater prawns and ikan lampam (tinfoil barb).

Ikan bandaraya, ikan baung ekor merah (Asian redtail catfish) and peacock bass are among the species the department has identified as invasive.