Help Caden Stop the Northern Snakehead Invasion

Caden Smith is organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

The Northern Snakehead is an invasive amphibious fish; this means that it can breathe air and move overland to disperse to new waterbodies. Northern Snakeheads are impacting a majority of native species within Arkansas and Maryland and are declining native fish stocks by 17-39% (Newhard and Love, 2019). Additionally, they are spreading quickly due to their fast reproduction, producing around 30,000 eggs per year (Wee, 1982) and disperse around 18km per year (Lapointe et al., 2012). To begin efforts of eradicating them from our ecosystems, we need to understand how they navigate on land. I predict these fish orient themselves on land by smelling airborne scent molecules, or odorants, that indicate new bodies of water that they can spread to.

For my study, I will use snakeheads and Common Carp (for comparison). Using standard neurobiological techniques while using a custom-made odor-delivery device that will puff controlled concentrations of odorants over their nostrils, I will be able to determine the minimum threshold for detecting odorants in each species. If snakeheads can detect significantly lower concentrations of odorants than carp, then we can assume that they can use this sense on land.

For the second part of this study, small traps will be constructed using 3D printed frogs and an electronic motor. Frogs were chosen to be represent prey since a recent study showed that a closely related species to Northern Snakeheads, Channa aurolineata, leaves water to hunt tree frogs (Nico, 2022). These traps will be placed at the edge of a waterbody and will be monitored by trail cameras. Each frog will be coated in frog oils to ensure olfactory cues match the visual cues. This will elucidate whether they can be coaxed out of the water. Overall, this project will have a strong positive impact on the native wildlife in the regions affected by Northern Snakeheads and will help protect the wildlife that is at risk of invasion of this species.

In order to make this happen, I need YOUR help. I have now received over $6000 in funding for this project, but am still short $2000. Below is a breakdown of what I have yet to purchase for this project (I currently have $4000 in grants to pay for most of this). Please help me make this project happen and keep our native wildlife safe!