RONDÔNIA, BRAZIL — A pirarucu measuring 2.46 meters in length and weighing nearly 138 kilograms was captured in the Rio Cautário State Extractive Reserve, in Costa Marques, Rondônia, on Wednesday (23). According to the State Department of Environmental Development (Sedam), this is the largest specimen of the species ever recorded in a Protected Area (UC) in Rondônia.

The capture is part of management actions aimed at controlling and eradicating the species, which is considered invasive in the Rio Cautário basin, within the Protected Area. The project is carried out by Sedam in partnership with an association of extractivists from the region.

The extractivists participate in all stages of the management process, from capturing the fish to cleaning the catch. After the process, the fish are sold to a partner processing plant, which provides insulated boxes, ice and transportation. The proceeds from the sales are divided among the residents of the reserve.

Sedam biologist Rodrigo Rios explained that removing a fish of this size requires a major effort from the teams involved.

“Normally, it is a huge challenge to capture a fish of this size. It involves the work of community members from the capture to removing it from the lake and transporting it to the camp, where we carry out the evisceration process,” he said.

According to the biologist, the specimen surpassed the previous largest records cataloged in the state.

“We believe this is the largest record of a pirarucu captured within a Protected Area in Rondônia. Until then, there was a record of a specimen captured in the Machado River, near Ji-Paraná, which measured 2.44 meters and weighed about 120 kilograms. The fish we captured now surpassed those marks in both length and weight,” he said.

Although native to the Amazon, the pirarucu is considered an invasive species in the Rio Cautário basin. According to Rodrigo Rios, its presence threatens the region’s environmental balance because it competes with native species.

“The work is carried out to remove it from the protected area because it consumes native species. The eradication effort seeks to remove all specimens, from juveniles to adults,” he explained.

Amazon Agency