Snakehead infiltrates Virginia waters and legislation

To keep the snakehead in check, Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon, has introduced a bill to increase the penalty for people who introduce the non-native fish into state waters.

Surovell's bill easily passed the Senate last month and won a unanimous endorsement Wednesday from a subcommittee of the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources.

VDGIF officials believed the threat of jail time would be a stronger deterrent than a fine.

Raptors, like hawks and eagles, have started hunting snakehead fish for food, coexisting with the invasive species.

While the species may be able to coexist in a large and busy body of water like the Potomac River, experts worry that it could do a great deal of damage in a smaller river or lake.

According to a fact sheet by USGS, snakeheads can threaten an ecosystem by eating up the fish population or becoming a direct competitor for food.