Western officials seek to have Eastern 'Frankenfish' protected

ST. GEORGE — A group of Western county commissioners who have problems with the Endangered Species Act has filed to have an Asian fish that's invaded the East protected under the act.

Washington County Commissioner Alan Gardner, along with commissioners from 12 other Western states, are petitioning the Fish and Wildlife Service to include the northern snakehead fish on the endangered species list.

A Fish and Wildlife Service spokesman said injurious species are exempted from protection under the act, but the commissioners still hope to show lawmakers in the East what problems the act presents to officials in the West.

The large, toothy fish has been dubbed the "Frankenfish." It can grow up to 3 feet, breathe air and wriggle across land and it eats fish and frogs. In many of the Eastern areas where it has turned up, there are no predators to control it.

The fish have been sold in the United States as a delicacy in Asian food markets and some have been sold in pet stores. In 2002, the federal government outlawed the transport of live snakeheads.

Pershing County Commissioner Roger Mancebo, a Democrat from Lovelock, Nev., has joined Gardner, a Republican, and the other commissioners in backing the petition.

Mancebo said the petition will be an eye-opener for those who have not had to deal with the Endangered Species Act in land management.

Mancebo said he hopes it will get the attention of Eastern lawmakers and bring to light how certain species are listed as endangered just because ecology groups allegedly want them to be listed.

Gardner cited problems southwestern Utah landowners have faced with environmental groups regarding the Endangered Species Act, especially with the desert tortoise and the resulting habitat conservation plan.

"It's had a big impact on us," Gardner said. "Private property owners are denied use of their property if it affects the species."

He said grazing has been eliminated in many areas and he contends that some environmental groups are just trying to force people off the land.

The petition's purpose is to call attention to these issues through a species in the East with a potentially large habitat. The snakehead's habitat could extend through 11 states in the Chesapeake Bay drainage, from Vermont down to North Carolina, according to the research done by the petitioning group.

"It's in response to the whole Endangered Species Act," Gardner said.