Review of the Final Report of the Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team Invasive Catfish Task Force

The Invasive Catfish Task Force (ICTF) was established in 2012 by the Chespeake Bay Program’s Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team (SF-GIT) and charged with identifying management options that could be applied Bay-wide to respond to the spread of invasive blue (Ictalurus furcatus) and flathead (Pylodictis olivaris) catfish and to concerns that these species may cause ecological and economic harm to Chesapeake Bay. 

In February 2014, the ICTF produced a draft report that included background information on the ICTF, the problem and scope, an overview of invasive catfishes, current management efforts, and seven recommendations.  The SF-GIT requested a review of the ICTF report and recommendations by STAC, and the request was approved by STAC in March 2014.

The STAC assembled a team of 7 professionals with backgrounds in the control and management of invasive fishes, fish biology, estuarine ecology, and resource economics to review the ICTF report.