Asian Carp and Paylakes
Asian carp have begun showing up in paylakes. This is because more and more paylakes are now buying large, river catfish. The commercial fisherman netting and transporting these river catfish, inadvertently also transport Asian carp. While stocking such fish in a pond or private lake doesn't seem like a problem, this could be further from the truth. Actually, this is the very reason Asian carp are the problem they are today.
Asian carp were originally imported into southern fish farm ponds in the 1970s. They served to help keep aquaculture facilities clean and also we're an inexpensive, fast-growing addition to fresh fish markets. Not long after their introduction, these fish found their way into the natural waters in the Mississippi River Basin.
These fast-growing, aggressive, highly adaptable fish moved north through the Mississippi River Basin. They have since overwhelmed the Mississippi and Illinois River systems where they now make up more than 95% of the biomass in some areas.
This is why these fish showing up in so many different paylakes is a problem. One heavy rain and these fish find their way through the lakes overflow and into our local creeks and rivers.
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