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(NBC) - Have you ever wondered what things you could find inside a South Florida pond?
Pythons, parakeets, monitor lizards, monkeys and iguanas are some of the usual critters. Now, there’s something new.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, a 14-year-old boy found a red-bellied piranha in a pond near West Palm Beach in October. Just 10 days later, a second piranha was found.
Investigators say they think the fish were dumped from an aquarium. Biologists from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission returned to the pond Tuesday to dump a chemical into the water to make sure the fish are gone.
Biologists say the chemical, called rotenone, has been used by fisheries since 1934 to get rid of fish without harming the habitat.
Piranhas are illegal in Florida. Anyone who owns one could be fined $1,000 and sentenced to a year in jail.
Scientists say after the pond is cleared they will stock it with native freshwater fish.
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