Officials with the Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan say another invasive species has been found in the Bay of Quinte.
A commercial fisherman caught a tench near the water treatment plant earlier this fall and BQ-RAP officials say that brings up a number of red flags.
They can affect native species and water quality by competing with native minnows, bullheads and suckers for food, since they eat large amounts of snails and insect larvae.
Tench are typically dark olive to pale golden tan, with a bronze belly and bright reddish-orange eyes and are native to Europe and western Asia.
The fish were brought to North America in the 19th century for use as a food and sport fish and could have been introduced here by someone using them as live bait
If you catch or see a tench, you should contact the Invasive Species Hotline.
You can find that information at quintenews.com.
