Identification

• The adult carp features two appendages near its mouth known as barbels, which the fish uses to feel for food along the bottom. The carp possesses large scales and a long dorsal fin. The carp is olive to red-brown on its back and silver-bronze on the sides. The underbelly is yellowish or combined with white, with the lower fins having a hint of red. Carp can easily achieve weights in the range of 20 to 30 lbs. with some growing much larger. State records for carp are often in the 40- to 60-lb. range, such as Pennsylvania's record as of March 2010 of a 52-lb. specimen.
  
  

History

• The original reason for bringing carp to America was as a source of food, as the fish was popular in Europe for such purposes. However, the carp seemingly fell from favor as food. The Indiana Aquatic Invasive Species website states that there is a bit of a clouded history as to when carp first came to the United States. Some sources claim that carp came from France as early as the 1830s, brought to New York and stocked in lakes, rivers and ponds. The United States Fish Commission became involved in introducing the species to the states by the 1880s. Carp wound up in farm ponds, lakes and then in rivers. Soon the carp had a distribution throughout the country.
  
  

Effects

• The carp has the ability to cause havoc in some aquatic ecosystems when too many exist. The fish stirs up the bottom searching for food, affecting aquatic plant growth and the homes of invertebrates like crayfish. Carp also consume fish eggs and can wreck the spawning locations of some fish. Although a young carp can wind up as prey for some species, the fish grow so rapidly that these conditions exist for only a short time.
  
  

Diet

• Carp have a varied diet that helps categorize the species as omnivores, eating both plant matter and other creatures they discover in the water. The carp swims close to the bottom and roots along with its snout, almost like a pig looking for food, until it finds something edible. Carp often take something into their mouth to taste it before deciding whether to eat it or spit it back out. Carp have teeth in their throat, not in their jaws; these teeth crunch up the meal before it goes to the stomach. Water plants, algae, the larvae of insects, crayfish, mussels and small fish are all potential meals for a carp.
  
  

Angling

• Anglers that target carp use an assortment of baits, from night crawlers to dough balls to corn. Carp are often finicky and bite very lightly, making it difficult to know if the fish is on your line. Once you do hook a carp, though, it will fight fiercely for as long as it can, before finally tiring. Fishermen will use a range of tackle to catch carp, with the lightest types providing the angler with the best challenges.