Asian Carp: The Invasion/ Austin L.

Asian Carp: The Invasion Austin L.

Imagine this, you and your family are boating down the Illinois River for a fun summer day. You speed down the river, while sipping your drink, talking to your family, when a massive fish jumps out of the water. A huge thud and a few screams are heard as a thirty pound, two foot, slimy, ugly fish hits the floor of the boat. What was that?!

What are Asian carp, and why are they here? “Asian carp" actually refers to several species of carp, including the bighead, silver, grass and black carp. The bighead carp, Hypophthalmichthys nobilis, and the silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix, are primarily filter-feeding fish, and consume animal and plant plankton. Asian carp can grow up to one hundred and ten pounds, but their average size is forty to fifty pounds. They have a huge appetite and can consume five to twenty percent of their body weight a day. The carp are able to strip the food chain of algae, plankton, and other microscopic organisms. Black carp or Mylopharyngodon piceus, have different diets. They primarily consume aquatic mollusks. These fish can grow up to seven feet and weigh up to one hundred pounds. None of these fish are native to North America. They were originally from Southeast Asia, and were introduced into the United States during the 1970's to help aquaculture, wastewater management, and keeping retention ponds clean. These fish were able to get into the Mississippi River system due to flooding, where they have spread into the Missouri River, the Illinois River, and the Tennessee River.

Why are Asian Carp a problem in the Illinois River?

The biggest problem Asian Carp pose in the Illinois River is the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. This man-made canal connects the Illinois River and the Great Lakes. This gives Asian Carp a direct route into the Great Lakes. The Asian Carp also harm the Illinois River's ecosystem and its inhabitants. They have harmed the ecosystem of the river by consuming the same food as the native inhabitants, creating a very competitive environment in which native fish cannot contend. This subsequently harms the economy that revolves around the Illinois River. Fisherman can no longer bring in a steady flow of native fish to sell, and are forced to catch what they regard as trash fish. One of the Asian carp, the silver, is an immediate threat to people and their property. The motors on boats have been known to disturb these fish, causing them to "fly" out of the water. As these fling themselves through the air they can fall on boats, property, or people potentially harming them. Many people have suffered broken jaws, noses, ribs, arms and legs after being hit by flying carp, but lucky no fatalities have been reported yet.

Why would they be a problem in the Great Lakes?

Asian carp are one of the most destructive invasive species and if they reach the Great Lakes, they could destroy an ecosystem that supports a sport fishing industry that provides thousands of jobs and brings in an estimated four billion dollars each year. The Asian Carp would compete for food with other native fish in the environment, such as ciscos, bloaters, and yellow perch, which are necessary prey for predators in the lakes like walleye, largemouth bass, muskellunge, northern pike, and lake trout. Once Asian carp mature, none of these predators can eat them. The Great Lakes are also home to federally listed endangered plant and animal species. Over 46 percent of the endangered species living in the have already been affected by previous invasive species and without protection, many of these species populations could be significantly damaged, or eradicated from the Great Lakes with the introduction of Asian carp. Another large risk is if a significant silver carp population is established in the Great Lakes, they could start to behave like the carp population currently terrorizing the Illinois River's waterways. Boaters, jet-skiers, and rowers would be at the same risk of getting their property or themselves hurt while on the water.

How do we keep the Asian Carp out of the Great Lakes?

The United States government, more specifically the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), has already taken initiative to solve this growing problem. They have installed electrical dispersal barriers throughout the CSSC (Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal) to discourage fish and other aquatic organisms from passing through the canal. These barriers have proven to be effective at keeping fish from passing through the CSSC, but the Great Lakes are still very vulnerable to Asian carp.

The USACE is currently working to identify other possible pathways Asian carp could use to enter the Great Lakes. This initiative is part of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS), and is know as the "Other Pathways Study." This project has already successfully installed a 1,500 foot fish barrier fence at Eagle Marsh in Fort Wayne, Indiana once it was identified as a possible Asian carp pathway. Asian Carp getting into the Great Lakes by a waterway is not their only opportunity however.

Fisherman using them as live bait, irresponsible fish processors, fish markets and food wholesalers that ship live Asian carp to vendors inside the Great Lakes basin are also possibilities for Asian carp getting into the Great Lakes. The U.S Fish and Wildlife is enforcing new laws concerning the transportation of bighead carp, and is currently working with natural resource agencies to perform inspections on bait shops, fish processing plants, and fish markets to combat this threat.

Would it be possible to eradicate Asian Carp if they were to establish a population in the Great Lakes?

An effort to completely exterminate an Asian Carp population once inside the Great Lakes would be extremely expensive and difficult. It might not even be possible. The biggest factors in determining if getting rid of an Asian carp population would be possible is the location the fish have inhabited and the size of the population. If the Asian carp were in an area of one of the lakes where netting would be possible and their numbers were low, then an operation to remove them could potentially be successful, however the most likely scenario is the Asian carp reproducing at an extraordinarily fast pace and inhabiting deep water, inaccessible to any forms of netting. A population such as this would require extensive effort and resources to eradicate. This is why it is extremely important to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, because once they are there, they are not going to leave anytime soon.

Bibliography 

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"Asian Carp in the Great Lakes Region." Asian Carp in the Great Lakes Region. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

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"Black Carp (Mylopharyngodon Piceus) - FactSheet." Black Carp (Mylopharyngodon Piceus) - FactSheet. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

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"Bighead Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Nobilis) - FactSheet." Bighead Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Nobilis) - FactSheet. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

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"Canadian Report: Great Lakes Would Provide Hospitable Environment for Invasive Asian Carp." Canadian Report: Great Lakes Would Provide Hospitable Environment for Invasive Asian Carp. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

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"Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) - FactSheet." Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) - FactSheet. N.p., n.d.

Web. 06 Nov. 2015.