John North Editor & Publisher

Whatís going on in the waterways of North Carolina?
Exotic wildlife is turning up surprisingly close to home.

For instance, I read about a 1-1/4-lb. piranha, a carnivorous fish, captured by a fisherman in the Catawba River near Mount Holly on June 30.

A few days later, I saw a story about three young boys who were fishing in a pond in Maiden (near Hickory), where they spotted two eyes peeking out of the water at them ó they belonged to a 2-1/2-foot alligator.

The piranha was reeled in by 46-year-old Jerry Melton, who was hoping to catch a catfish for dinner. Melton told The Associated Press that the piranha flashed its teeth at him as he landed it. When Melton opened the fishís mouth with a pocket knife, he said the piranha bit down and left a dent in the blade.

The piranha, which is native to South America and lives in freshwater, probably was dumped in the river by someone who kept it as a pet and grew tired of it, officials surmised.

ìReleasing nonnative fish in our native waters is highly irresponsible because it could have a very adverse affect on the fish in that ecosystem,î Paul Barrington, an ichthyologist with the Fort Fisher Aquarium, told The AP.

Meanwhile, Melton, who plans to keep the piranha in his freezer until he can have it mounted, said he will think twice before entering the riverís water again.

As for the alligator, the boys first saw only its eyes peeking out of the water at them. After one boy tossed a stick toward the reptile, it stuck its head further out of the water, and they realized it was an alligator.

The boys asked some adults to contact the police.Rescue workers appeared on the scene, tied a piece of bologna to a string and captured the reptile.

The alligator could have grown as long as 10 feet if it had not been caught in the pond, according to Eric Kanipe, one of the two Maiden Rescue Squad members who helped to capture the reptile.

Kanipe told The AP that the alligator, which (of course) is not native to the area, had to be someoneís pet that had been dumped.

After its capture, the alligatorís jaw was taped shut with duct tape so it could be moved safely. A state Wildlfe Resource Commission officer was scheduled to pick up the animal last Thursday. It is illegal to keep an exotic animal in Catawba County.

Closer to home, a 3-1/2-foot-long alligator was spotted last July 26 by some canoeists in the French Broad River near Brevard, exciting much local concern. The four-year-old alligator was captured several days later and eventually† transported to a natural habitat.

Whatís next?

Will there be reports of pythons putting the squeeze on kids in innertubes on the Swananoa River some lazy Sunday afternoon?

Will we be hearing of kayakers getting chomped on by ëgators in the Nantahala Gorge?

Will the roster of dangerous exotic creatures expand to include an African water cobra or an electric eel?

On land, will we be dodging scorpions and tarantulas ó when weíre not fleeing from feral wolf dogs?
In the 19th century, hardy pioneers ìtamedî the wilderness by killing off much of the wildlife.

Ironically, in the 21st century, irresponsible pet owners are recolonizing the world, or at least this part of it, with exotic creatures ó to the detriment of the creatures and of the areaís residents.

I used to daydream of lounging beneath the sun on a boulder in the French Broad River, with my feet dangling in the water. I doubt Iíd find that relaxing anymore ó not with the ìJawsî theme song ringing in my imagination.

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John North, publisher and editor of the Daily Planet, may be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .