The Jammu and Kashmir Lake Conservation and Management Authority (LCMA) discovered for the first time a rare type of fish known as “crocodile gar” during the ongoing cleaning of the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar. The ‘alligator gar’ fish is native to North America and is distinguished by its alligator-like head and razor-sharp teeth. Masood Ahmed, an expert from the Research and Monitoring Department of J&K LCMA, said that the detected fish would be analyzed with the help of Fisheries Department of Fisheries and SCAST-K. “We will seek assistance from the Department of Fisheries and Scast-K to determine the impacts of this type of fish on our existing fish species within Dal Lake.”
Videos of this rare fish, discovered during the cleaning of Dal Lake, went viral on social media, where this fish was shown and displayed. Many netizens expressed surprise, claiming that the type of fish is an invasive species that threatens aquatic life.
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According to experts from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Science and Technology Kashmir, the fish seen in Dal Lake is Alligator Gar Fish, which has been seen for the first time in Kashmir. “This fish is not harmful, but we do not have any research on it as it has been seen in Dal Lake for the first time,” he explained.
He reported sighting grass carp fish in Dal Lake in 2016. “Later, our team also found another one in Mansbal Lake, but this gharial is heard for the first time in Kashmir,” he said, “we will see how and from where it came here in Kashmir and since when it has been here.” He said proper research would be done to determine how it reached here and whether it is a threat to the local fish varieties in Kashmir.