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The Protected Areas of the Cozie Alps have created a video to tell the story of the involvement of amateur fishermen in containing the catfish from the waters of the Natural Park of the Avigliana Lakes. This is an initiative organized in 2025 by the park authority staff as part of the European Life Predator project to combat the spread of Silurus glanis, an invasive alien aquatic predator that threatens to compromise the aquatic biodiversity of water bodies in southern Europe.

“Silent Predators” is the title given to the international workshop organized by the Life Predator Project in Cameri (NO) on December 5, 2025. It is a free and open-access conference, hosted in the beautiful setting of Villa Picchetta by the Protected Areas of Ticino and Lake Maggiore, where the knowledge and experiences gained in managing catfish in the lakes of Southern Europe, including the Avigliana Lakes Natural Park, will serve as a starting point for reflection and discussion on other initiatives dealing with invasive alien species.

On Monday, October 29, 2025, professional fishing activities began for the containment of the catfish in the Avigliana Lakes Natural Park. The initiative is one of the actions of the Life Predator project, of which the Protected Areas of the Cozie Alps are partners, aimed at containing the Silurus glanis, the aquatic predator that represents an invasive alien species in the freshwater basins of Southern Europe.

From Wednesday, June 4 to Friday, June 6, 2025, the Protected Areas of the Cottian Alps participated in the monitoring visit of the Life Predator project, which took place in Portugal along the Tagus River basin. As expected in this type of program, the event was characterized as a technical and practical meeting halfway through the project between the project partners and the body designated by the European Union to oversee the progress of the work.

The evening/night fishing sessions for catfish in the Grande Lake of Avigliana will begin on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at 8 PM. From June to October, twice a month, a group of amateur fishermen will be engaged in selective fishing to contain Silurus glanis, the invasive alien species that has been introduced into the freshwater basins of the Avigliana Lakes Natural Park, altering its ecological balance. This activity is part of the Life Predator Project, which aims to contain the spread of the large aquatic predator in the lakes of Southern Europe.

The Life Predator project team has produced the second issue of the newsletter to illustrate the progress of the work.

«Predatori silenziosi» è il titolo che è stato dato al workshop internazionale organizzato dal Progetto Life Predator a Cameri (NO) il 5 dicembre 2025. Si tratta di un convegno gratuito e ad accesso libero, ospitato nella bella cornice di Villa Picchetta dalle Aree Protette del Ticino e del Lago Maggiore, in cui le conoscenze ed esperienze maturate nella gestione del pesce siluro nei bacini lacustri dell’Europa meridionale, tra cui il Parco Naturale dei Laghi di Avigliana, serviranno da spunto di riflessione e confronto su altre iniziative che si occupano di specie aliene invasive.

L'attività didattica mira a indagare le differenze tra specie autoctone e alloctone e sviluppare con i ragazzi una riflessione sul valore della differenza.

Partendo da un confronto sul significato della biodiversità si arriverà a quelle che
possono definirsi le sue principali minacce, tra le quali, spesso per scelta  volontaria da parte dell’uomo, la diffusione delle specie alloctone.

Partendo dalla comparsa dei pesci, ne seguiremo l’evoluzione fino ai pesci di oggi per poi arrivare a trattare il tema degli organismi alieni e del progetto Life Predator, con particolare riferimento al pesce siluro.

I laghi e i loro ambienti