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National Invasive Species Information Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Home / Aquatic Invasives / Fish and Other Aquatic Vertebrates / Red-Bellied Pacu

Red-Bellied Pacu

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Red-bellied pacu
Red-bellied pacu, adults - Photo by U.S. Geological Survey
Scientific Name: 
Piaractus brachypomus (Cuvier, 1817) (ITIS)
Common Name: 
Red-bellied pacu, pirapitinga
Native To: 
South America (Di Santo et al. 2018)
Date of U.S. Introduction: 
Individual specimens have been caught since the 1960s, but no reproducing populations have yet become established in the U.S. (NAS Database)
Means of Introduction: 
Probably through aquarium releases or fish farm escapes (Di Santo et al. 2018)
Impact: 
Environmental impact is unknown (NAS Database)

Distribution / Maps / Survey Status

Images

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Red-Bellied Pacu.

Partnership
The Quiet Invasion: A Guide to Invasive Species of the Galveston Bay Area - Black Pacu; Red-Bellied Pacu
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Galveston Bay Estuary Program; Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC).
Federal Government
Pirapitinga (Piaractus brachypomus) Ecological Risk Screening Summary (Aug 2012) (PDF | 725 KB)

DOI. Fish and Wildlife Service.

See also: Ecological Risk Screening Summaries for more species summaries

National Exotic Marine and Estuarine Species Information System (NEMESIS): Chesapeake Bay Introduced Species Database - Piaractus brachypomus
Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Marine Invasions Research Lab.
Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: Fact Sheet - Pirapatinga
DOI. USGS. Wetland and Aquatic Research Center.
Provides distribution maps and collection information (State and County).
Academic
Animal Diversity Web - Piaractus brachypomus
University of Michigan. Museum of Zoology.

Citations