The Introduction and Farming of Salmonids in Patagonia, the Beagle Channel and Chinook Salmon Invasion Cases.

JAVIER CIANCIO

Oslo

Workshop; Ecological Globalization; 2019

Universidad de Oslo

Both strictly anadromous species (which are the ones that migrate to the sea for feedingpurposes) and freshwater resident salmonids were introduced around the world for manyreasons: aesthetic, sport fishing and as a food commodity. Due to these actions, coldfreshwater habitats hold nowadays well-established, introduced populations of at least 10salmonid species in temperate latitudes. In Patagonia, their introduction was motivated bymany reasons that vary with the historical context. The introduction of trout and salmonstarted at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, and it was motivatedmainly by the emptiness encountered when arriving in the Patagonian desert (Ciancio2003). The lack of diversity in the freshwater fauna, the very few species that offeredtrophy-size fishes (the largest native fish, which is the ?trucha criolla? (Percychtys trucha),achieves a maximum length of 40 cm and weights no more than 2 kg), and the wish toEuropeanize the landscape by recently arrived immigrants were the main drivers to promotefish imports from the US and Europe. Currently, there aren?t any large river basins or lakeswithout feral salmonid populations.