'Kaśka is already feeling better. She is upright. She eats normally', reports Wojciech Basałygo from the city office in Świnoujście. The tambaqui, sometimes called 'vegetarian piranha', named Katarzyna, has lived in the local Sea Fishing Museum since the 1980s. For a few days, the museum employees, scientists, the mayor of Świnoujście Joanna Agatowska and firefighters have been involved in a rescue operation for the old, one-meter-long fish after the bottom of the over 4-meter aquarium in which it was swimming cracked.

Last Monday, Kasia's carers noticed that the water level in the aquarium with a capacity of about 3 thousand litres had dropped by almost half. They temporarily moved the fish to a smaller aquarium, called in scientists, firefighters, the Sea Fisheries Institute for help, and also called friendly oceanariums to transport it to a safe place.

'We started consultations to decide how to save the fish. Ichthyologists decided that the best thing for Kasia would be to use the water recovered from the cracked aquarium and place it in a replacement tank on the museum grounds', explains museum director Lech Trawicki. 'The fish was stressed. It refused to eat for the whole day and swam on its side. The employees decided to watch over it all night', Trawicki emphasises.

The replacement pallet tank was provided by firefighters. 'Old' water was pumped into it, and a pump was installed. On Tuesday, Kasia's condition improved significantly. The rescue operation now mainly involves installing a new aquarium, which could take 2 weeks.

'Very thick, large glass panes are needed. The company that makes the aquariums has already ordered them. The waiting time for such a delivery is about ten days. Gluing will also take some time', Basałygo points out.

The glass panes will to be delivered directly to the Sea Fishing Museum. Aquarium construction specialists will work on site. Kaśka’s new home will probably be slightly wider and deeper than the damaged aquarium.

We are optimistic and believe that Kasia will live many more years in good health, although we are aware of how much this situation has stressed the fish', Trawicki says.

The fish from the Sea Fishing Museum in Świnoujście is probably the oldest tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum) in Poland and one of the oldest in Europe. It comes from the same family as piranhas (Serrasalmidae). It occurs naturally in South America, in the Amazon and Orinoco basins.

Basałygo assures that according to ichthyologists, Kaśka's condition is stable. 'The fish has regained its appetite. That is a good sign. It eats bananas and fish food. It used to like beef stomachs, but it no longer has teeth', Basałygo says.

The new aquarium with a filtration system ordered by the museum was valued at PLN 25,000 net. The city authorities declared their support for museum in financing this urgent purchase. (PAP)

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