Perspective: Finding economically beneficial ways to use invasive Pterygoplichthys

[bekateen]

Wan Ismail, W.A., Ramli, N.A. and Baharuddin, H. (2024). Transforming the invasive suckermouth catfish into a goldmine of opportunity. Epitome of Nature (EON), 12: 33-35.

https://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/104442/
PDF: https://ir.uitm.edu.my/id/eprint/104442/1/104442.pdf

The invasive suckermouth catfish (

Pterygoplichthys

spp.), commonly known as the pleco, janitor fish, or ikan bandaraya is a species native to South America but has become widespread in various water bodies across the globe, including Malaysia. The invasion of suckermouth catfish in Malaysia has caused significant ecological and economic impacts.
...
These non-native fish have established themselves in various freshwater ecosystems, outcompeting native species for food and habitat. Their burrowing behaviour destabilises riverbanks, leading to increased sedimentation and erosion, which negatively affects water quality and the health of aquatic habitats.
...
Various products can be derived from suckermouth catfish, each offering unique economic opportunities.

[Jools]

I do like the idea of pleco satay and enjoyed seeing the picture of it. However, the paper talks about sustainability and I would have thought the aim of utilising invasive species in these ways would be to make money while eradicating them.

Eradication of your source material is not a good business case. Riverside "Pop up" pleco satay kiosks do seem like a superb idea.

Cheers,

Jools

[Shane]

Saw a news story recently about plecos in Mexico. They are using them to make cat and dog food.
-Shane

[bekateen]

Here's a second paper exploring ways to exploit invasive

Pterygoplichthys

. The authors are attempting to use chemicals extracted from pleco bones to absorb environmental contaminants (in this case ibuprofin from sewage run-off):

Cisneros-Ontiveros, H.G., Flores-Rojas, A.I., Medellín-Castillo, N.A., Cruz-Briano, S.A., Zubieta-Otero, L.F., Rodríguez-García, M.E., Moreno-Piraján, J.C., Labrada-Delgado, G.J. and Reyes-Hernández, J., 2025. Valorization of hydroxyapatite from devilfish bones as adsorbent for the removal of ibuprofen in aqueous solution. MRS Advances, pp.1-9.
https://doi.org/10.1557/s43580-024-01083-w
https://link.springer.com/article/10.15 ... 24-01083-w

Abstract
In this study, devilfish bones (family Loricariidae) were used as a source of hydroxyapatite (HAp) to adsorb ibuprofen in water as a biomaterial valorization approach. The HAp was extracted by hydrothermal pretreatment with hydrogen peroxide and then calcined at 550 and 850 °C. SEM–EDS, XRD and TGA analyses confirmed the main presence of HAp in the bones. The evaluation of the adsorption capacity of ibuprofen obtained a maximum capacity of 20.24 mg g−1 at pH 7 using HAp calcined at 850 °C. The adsorption of ibuprofen on HAp was attributed to electrostatic attraction and hydrogen bonding mechanisms corroborated by FT-IR analysis. These results suggest that HAp derived from devilfish bones is viable for the removal of ibuprofen from water.

[aquaholic]

Once you start making money from an invasive species, you will never be able to eradicate them. Some individuals/businesses would find easier ways to capture - breed or deliberately spread them.

If eradication is no longer a possibility, then the invasive species will become a native species after a few decades - centuries - millenia have passed.