Help Remove Invasive Fish in Polk County

We are the Wadley family, commercial fishermen in Polk County, Florida, and surrounding areas. For generations, our family has worked these waters, and we’ve seen the damage invasive species like plecos (armored catfish) and tilapia cause to our ecosystem. Every day, we watch native game fish such as bass and bluegill struggle for oxygen, shrinking in size and numbers as invasive fish multiply. The plecos are nearly impossible for other fish to control, and tilapia have exploded in population, both destroying the balance of our waterways.


We already remove millions of invasive tilapia, but with more support, we could remove millions more. The challenge is that we can only sell what the market allows, and the costs of labor, equipment repairs, and fuel make it hard to keep up. There’s no market for plecos, so we do this work unpaid, simply because we care about the health of our environment and the future of our community. The funds we raise will go directly toward repairing our equipment, covering fuel and labor costs, and allowing us to bring more help out on the water. We also want to use these resources to spread awareness about the dangers of invasive species and show the government that our waters deserve more attention and funding.


Our goal is to remove as many invasive fish as possible and educate as many people as we can. With your support, we can improve water quality and help native game fish populations recover. We hope our work inspires more support for this cause so that other commercial fishermen can join in and help restore the natural balance of our waters.