This information contains historical data that may be very old, but it does give a pretty complete picture of what has gone on in the basin over the years. Not all established. Many records based on one-time occurrences. Stockings are listed even if they failed.  Extirpated populations are also in the database.  Introductions have occurred due to gamefish stocking, bait bucket, aquariums, pet releases, ballast water (zms, mitten crab) and incidently with plants.

Nutria  Caiman

Number of species in the family that have been introduced.

Here is a list of foreign fishes established, some widely like the carps and some locally like the tilapia.  Peacock cichlid in NE Texas.  Blue tilapia in Oklahoma (Arkansas R and Canadian R.).  Misgunus in the Chicago and Des Planes system. Tench were stocked a long time ago and may still be established in the lower Missouri system and upper Arkansas system.  Sailfin catfish in French Broad drainage in western NC (Tennessee drainage) newly established.  Platyfish in the South Platte drainage.

Red means established, some just locally.  Green means most likely established.  The two frog species, the spotted jellyfish, the daphnia (Atchafalaya), the Asian clam, and the nutria have been reported as established right here in LA.  Bithynia is in the upper Allegheny in PA (Ohio drainage) and Chicago area.  Eubosmina is in Pymatuming Res. (upper Ohio).  Bythotrephes in two Ohio reservoirs (upper Ohio).

Here is what makes up the native portion of introduced fishes.  The species in bold appear to be more widespread.

This is a list of pathways of introductions.  The pie chart shows relative percentages of number of species by pathway.  Almost one-third of all species were introduced for sportfishing, one-quarter were bait releases, etc.  Foreign – biocontrol, aquariums, ballast water, sport (Brown trout).

This map was developed by the Illinois Natural History Survey.  We need more data to support this map.

This is a new animal I just learned about, the carp louse.  It parasitizes fish primarily.  This group is found worldwide with 23 freshwater and marine species in US waters. However this species is native to SE Asia.  It has been spread to other continents with shipments of goldfish. According to William Poly at the California Academy of Sciences, it has been found in these states. In Africa, they are parasitizing rainbow trout in culture facilities.

Hundreds of small snakeheads were collected from the release of two fish in the now famous Maryland pond.

Cisco

Rainbow smelt are anadromous and very carnivorous and voracious feeders. Can reach 35 cm, average 20 cm.

Map shows specific point data only mapped by huc8.

This is a freshwater jellyfish native to China. It’s found in a wide range of habitats but most common in slow-moving or stagnant waterbodies.  It reproduces asexually when the water is warmest at the end of the summer.  Most likely it was imported with ornamental aquatic plants.  It was first observed in the US in Benson Creek near Frankfort Kentucky in 1916. They will consume fish eggs and in turn are preyed upon by crayfish.  Still being found in new lakes similarly like the zebra mussel has been.

Melanoides in Montana and Colorado. Radix (Asian) in the Platte and upper Arkansas in CO.  Japonica reported from Oklahoma and Nebraska. Chinensis reported from the Miss Basin from IL, IN, IA, MN, WI.  The New Zealand mudsnail is in the headwaters of the Missouri R in MT.  I might assume that these species are all well established in order to be detected and are probably more widespread than reported.

Mostly freshwater, but we do have some marine information.

Try to refine the data of not too precise locations such as “found in the state” to reference it to the huc8 level.  Point data is the best for fine analysis. Trying to manage county mapping with huc mapping.

Geographically we can use records from anywhere.