Using LSD to catch fish

The laboratory animal that Dr. Abramson chose was the Siamese fighting fish. It was plentiful, cheap, almost as sensitive to LSD as humans, and could, of course, be closely confined. When Dr. Abramson released the drug into tank water, the Siamese fighting fish surfaced and appeared as if in a stupor. Depending on the dosage, the fish stayed this way for hours, sometimes days, before resuming normal behavior.

For Loeb, who has far more ample lab facilities for testing fish than Dr. Abramson does, these initial tests were exciting. The poison baits used on carp had proved to be only partly successful, but if LSD could work on carp and other fish, the opportunities were unlimited for conservation authorities and sportsmen. For example, a pond loaded with carp poses problems. If any of the standard chemicals, such as rotenone, are used, all the fish, both carp and game fish, usually die, aquatic insects suffer and the poison sometimes lingers for months, preventing the restocking of game fish. But if a chemical could cause all the fish to surface for several hours without killing them, then the undesirable fish could be picked out and the game fish left to prosper.