There's a 'WANTED' poster out in Missouri for the northern snakehead fish, though it's only wanted dead, not alive. The fish has snake-like scales, a python-like pattern, aggressive teeth, can breathe normal air without gills, and can slither from place to place on the ground.
For the fourth time, the invasive fish from China and Russia has been caught from a Missouri body of water, below the Wappapello Lake Spillway north of Poplar Bluff. The angler didn't know what it was and left it on the pavement. It was still alive four hours later when it was handed over to authorities.
"Its main diet is small fish, but it will eat other invertebrates, amphibians, frogs, crayfish, birds, you name it," Missouri Department of Conservation fisheries biologist Dave Knuth tells KMOX's 'Total Information PM'.
"Is the northern snakehead dangerous? Can it hurt humans? If people go swimming in a body of water in Missouri should they be aware of this?" 'TIPM' asked. "They are aggressive when they're defending their young this time of year," Knuth responded. "This species exhibits extreme parental care by both the male and female, so when they are guarding their young fry they can become very aggressive."
The worst he's heard of, though, is nipping at ankles. He thinks the fish are more afraid of a larger animal like a human than anything else.
Knuth says if you catch one, take a photo, and then kill it by either cutting off its head or gutting it. Don't let it get away. It's illegal to transport one alive.