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Silver Carp

Scientific Name

Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1844) (ITIS)

Common Name

Silver carp

Native To

Eastern Asia (NAS Database)

Date of U.S. Introduction

1973 (NAS Database)

Means of Introduction

Imported for aquaculture and for phytoplankton control (NAS Database)

Impact

Has the potential to cause enormous damage to native species because it feeds on plankton required by larval fish and native mussels. Is a potential competitor with adults of some native fishes, for instance, gizzard shad, that also rely on plankton for food (NAS Database)

Silver carp, adult
Image use policy

Silver carp, adult

Credit

Photo by Lindsey Lewis; U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Find more images

Spotlights

  • Minnesota and Wisconsin DNRs Partner to Capture 323 Invasive Carp

    • Dec 1, 2023
    • Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

    • The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has confirmed the capture of 323 invasive carp on Thursday, Nov. 30 in Pool 6 of the Mississippi River, near Trempealeau, Wisconsin. Species captured were 296 silver carp, 23 grass carp, and 4 bighead carp. This is the largest single capture of invasive carp that has occurred in Minnesota to date. The capture was made possible by tracking tagged invasive carp, which led agency staff and contracted commercial fishers to them for removal.

  • 2022 Virtual Invasive Carp Forum

    • Sep 15, 2022
    • DOI. Fish and Wildlife Service.

    • On August 9, 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hosted a virtual forum on invasive carp harvest and product use. This virtual event was convened in response to direction provided by Congress in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022. Bighead, silver, black and grass carp – collectively referred to as ‘invasive carp’ – have been spreading in waterways across the United States and causing environmental damage since their introduction in the 1970s for use in aquaculture facilities and retention ponds. Provides access to the full recording of the forum, as well as the presentation slides.

  • Choose Copi: Eat Well and Do Good - State of Illinois Renames and Rebrands Asian Carp

    • Jun 22, 2022
    • Illinois Department of Resources.

    • Following more than two years of consumer research and planning, the State of Illinois unveiled "Copi," the new name for Asian carp, which is a play on “copious” – as that’s exactly what these fish are. By one estimate, 20 million to 50 million pounds of Copi could be harvested from the Illinois River alone each year, with hundreds of millions more in waterways from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast. The new name and brand are designed to address public misconceptions about this delicious top-feeding fish, which is overrunning Midwest waterways.

      Copi are mild, clean-tasting fish with heart-healthy omega-3s and very low levels of mercury. Increased consumption will help to stop them from decimating other fish populations in the Great Lakes and restore an ecological balance to waterways down stream.

  • eDNA from Invasive Silver Carp Identified in Lake Erie’s Presque Isle Bay

    • Jul 21, 2022
    • Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

    • The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced that it has conducted targeted invasive carp sampling in Presque Isle Bay, Erie County, after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) detected the presence of Silver Carp environmental DNA (eDNA). While no physical invasive carp specimens have been detected, the PFBC has requested that the USFWS collect additional water samples from Presque Isle Bay in the fall when more favorable environmental conditions are present for eDNA sampling. Members of the public can report sightings of aquatic invasive species to the PFBC using its online form.

  • Science and Innovation for Battling Invasive Carp

    • Mar 2022
    • DOI. USGS. Publications Warehouse.

    • The U.S. Geological Survey provides natural-resource managers with scientific information, risk assessment, and tools that can help to improve surveillance, prevention, and control strategies for managing invasive carp.
      Fact Sheet 2022–3012

  • Invasive Silver Carp Found in Texas Waters; Anglers Urged to Prevent Bait Bucket Transfers

    • Jul 15, 2021
    • Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

    • The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) received a report in late June that an invasive silver carp had been spotted in Choctaw Creek, a Texas tributary of the Red River approximately 15 miles downstream from Lake Texoma. "These are the first reports of silver carp from Texas waters, although they have previously been found in other areas of the Red River including just downstream from Lake Texoma in Oklahoma waters in 2019," said Dan Bennett, TPWD fisheries management biologist. "Invasive carp pose a significant risk to Lake Texoma’s ecosystem and boaters and there is adequate flow and upstream river area for them to become established and reproduce in the lake if introduced."

      Anyone who catches either silver carp or bighead carp in Texas waters is asked to report the sighting with location information and photos to AquaticInvasives@tpwd.texas.gov. Silver and bighead carp are prohibited exotic species in Texas and must be killed upon possession by beheading, gutting, gill-cutting or other means or placed on ice. Neither species can be possessed live.

Distribution / Maps / Survey Status

Federally Regulated

  • Injurious Wildlife Listings - Keeping Risky Wildlife Species Out of the United States

    • DOI. FWS. Fish and Aquatic Conservation.

    • Includes species listed as injurious wildlife under the Federal Lacey Act (18 USC 42), which makes it illegal to import injurious wildlife into the U.S. or transport between the listed jurisdictions in the shipment clause (the continental U.S., the District of Columbia, Hawaii, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any possession of the U.S.) without a permit. An injurious wildlife listing would not prohibit intrastate transport or possession of that species within a State where those activities are not prohibited by the State. Preventing the introduction of new harmful species is the only way to fully avoid impacts of injurious species on local, regional, and national economies and infrastructure, and on the natural resources of the U.S.

      Injurious wildlife are wild mammals, wild birds, amphibians, reptiles, fishes, crustaceans, mollusks and their offspring or eggs that are injurious to the interests of human beings, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, wildlife or wildlife resources of the U.S. Plants and organisms other than those stated above cannot be listed as injurious wildlife. For more information, see What Are Injurious Wildlife: A Summary of the Injurious Provisions of the Lacey Act and Summary of Species Currently Listed as Injurious Wildlife.

Videos

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source.

Council or Task Force
Partnership
Federal Government
International Government
State and Local Government
Academic
Professional
Citations