About two years ago, someone had dumped some goldfish into a Colorado lake. The handful of goldfish reproduced and now they are thousands in numbers. On Friday, the state wildlife officials stated that the non-native fish are now threatening indigenous aquatic species.

Jennifer Churchill, spokeswoman of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said that last month, rangers in Boulder County found a number of fish in a semi-rural lake. According to Churchill, it is a very serious problem and it should be resolved as soon as possible. At present, there are more than 3,000 gold fish in the lake, as per Churchill. State biologists have been reviewing the best way to eliminate the pet fish from the lake, the spokeswoman added.

Churchill further said that the officials have been thinking to use methods like electrofishing or draining the river. The method electrofishing includes dangling a live wire from a boat into the water. The current by the device will stun the fish and force them to surface. After that, they will be netted alive from the surface.

As per Churchill, the shock method was used to eliminate more than 2,000 goldfish from a nearby lake about three years ago.

Wildlife officials said that it is important to remove the goldfish because if the goldfish escape into waterways downstream, they could pose a threat to native species such as channel catfish. Ken Kehmeier, a senior aquatic biologist with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said, “Non-native species can be devastating to native populations by causing disease outbreaks and creating competition unbalance”.

The officials have advised people not to dump their pet fish into the water. According to Churchill, the state authorities have been seeking the public's help to find out who dumped the goldfish into the Boulder Lake.