By Louis Zylka
The 830 Times
The Casa de la Cultura’s Armored Catfish Tournament sent nearly 1,700 of the invasive species to fish heaven this past weekend.
The tournament aims to protect aquatic life in Del Rio and teach people about wildlife.
The 42-hour event is a collaboration between the Casa de la Cultura and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department with the objective to remove as many armored catfish from the San Felipe creek.
Nora Padilla, park interpreter from the TPWD, said the armored catfish are originally from South America and have been invasive since 1998 by eating the native plants and fish in the creeks. She said the tournament encourages people to clean the San Felipe waters by fishing and engaging in friendly competition.
“We want to restore all the native fish and all other aquatic life we have,” Padilla said.
Although the underlying goal is to protect wildlife, the tournament also gives away cash prizes to the teams that caught the most fish. Lupita De La Paz, executive director of the Casa de la Cultura, said the tournament has grown a lot over the past 12 years by bringing in more than 20,000 armored catfish during the tournaments.
“I feel people will still participate in the tournament, but what better way to make a difference than by also getting a prize,” De La Paz said.
The prizes included $500 awarded to the team that collected the most armored catfish. Second place received $300 and third place won $200 with $100 checks to the teams that caught the biggest fish, the smallest fish and the most tilapias. The Soaked Suckers, Jesus Lopez and Diego Lopez, won first place by collecting 655 catfish. Jesus Lopez said he has learned a lot from the tournament and has seen more fish repopulate over time at the creek.
The tournament lasted from March 24 to noon March 26. De La Paz said the tournament is a family-oriented event bringing a lot of people together.
The Casa de la Cultura will have another catfish tournament next month and a river cleanup event on April 15. You can find more information and updates on its official Facebook page.
De La Paz said the tournament couldn’t be held without the support of their sponsors. ”
“Silver Eagle Cares was our sponsor and we appreciate them stepping up to support,” she said.
