A black carp, which was found in a private pond in McCurtain County, has been reported to state officials.
It’s a first for the state.
Black carp linger at the bottom of water columns, eating mussels and snails. The wildlife department’s biologists say the carp can affect already imperiled native mussel species and compete with native fish for food.
Originally from Asia, the fish was brought to the U.S. in the 1970s and 1980s to control snail pests in aquaculture ponds, and as a possible food source. But by the 1990s, it escaped into the Mississippi River drainage because of high flood waters.
State and national efforts have been underway to control the fish in other areas of the U.S. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources started a bounty program to encourage reports of the fish back in 2015. The Illinois Department and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are tracking the carp’s spread across the Mississippi River Basin.
In Oklahoma, there’s a bounty for invasive black carp.
Anglers in the state can earn up to $100 for each fish reported and collected. No more than 10 fish per month are eligible for submission.
“Outside of Oklahoma, the majority of these fish have been caught incidentally when commercial fishers are harvesting other target species,” according to an ODWC bulletin. “Less than 1% of Black Carp harvested under the bounty program have been caught with recreational fishing gear.”
While the fish is invasive, it has been mistaken for other fish species. Wildlife officials recommend using due diligence when trying to identify the carp.
For people who catch it’s a fish and think it’s a black carp, authorities have specific instructions for reporting black carp to collect the bounty. To learn more visit the ODWC’s website.
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