Bighead carp

:"Bighead carps" is also used for the genus "Hypophthalmichthys" as a whole."Taxobox
name = Bighead carp


regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Cypriniformes
familia = Cyprinidae
genus = "Hypophthalmichthys"
species = "H. nobilis"
binomial = "Hypophthalmichthys nobilis"
binomial_authority = (Richardson, 1845)The bighead carp is a freshwater fish, one of several Asian carps. It is easily recognizable because of its large size and large, scaleless head. Bighead carp are considered a highly invasive species in the United States. Record sizes occasionally approach 100 lb (45 kg), but most places in the Mississippi River basin, a fish over 40 lb (18 kg) is considered very large. Bighead carp are popular quarry for bowfishermen; the [http://www.bowfishingassociation.com/ bowfishing record] , captured in the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois in May 2008, is 92.5 lb (42 kg).

The bighead carp has a tremendous growth rate, making it a lucrative aquaculture fish. Its value as a food fish has caused it to be exported from its native China to more than 70 other countries. Today, the bighead is distributed nearly globally.

Favoring temperate waters, the bighead carp occurs naturally in warm rivers and lakes. Bighead carp, (unlike the common carp, with which Europeans and most North Americans are more familiar), are primarily filter feeders. They are preferentially consumers of zooplankton but also consume phytoplankton and detritus.

Bighead carp and the closely related silver carp (H. molitrix) were imported to the United States to remove excess or undesirable plankton and thus improve water quality in sewage treatment plants and aquaculture facilities. However, some fish escaped into the Mississippi River basin, where they are now firmly established. A [http://www.anstaskforce.gov/Documents/Carps_Management_Plan.pdf national plan for the control of Asian carps] including bighead carp, was finalized in late 2007.

In the United States, a limited market has developed for bighead carp, particularly in ethnic communities, and they are farmed in ponds for this purpose. The live or very freshly killed market is most lucrative. Because of this, bighead carp are often transported live, and some feel that this is a high risk factor for the eventual spread of the fish, either through release by the end purchaser, or through escape during transport. Another potential avenue for unintentional spread of bighead carp is through use as fishing bait. [ [http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/OtherDocuments/ACBSRAFinalReport2005.pdf Kolar et al. 2005. Asian Carps of the Genus Hypophthalmichthys (Pisces, Cyprinidae) ― A Biological Synopsis and Environmental Risk Assessment] ]

Communities are attempting to contain the spread of the extremely invasive bighead carp. New York has banned the import and possession of live bighead carp, with the exception of New York City, where they still may be legally sold in live food markets (but they must be killed before they leave the premises). Possession of live bighead carp has been illegal in Illinois since 2005. Since February 2007, using bighead carp as fishing bait has been illegal in Missouri.

References

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External links

* [http://fisc.er.usgs.gov/Carp_ID/html/hypophthalmichthys_nobilis.html Florida Integrated Science Center] Kolar et al. 2005
* [http://www.glfc.org/fishmgmt/carp.php Great Lakes Fishery Commission]
* [http://www.umesc.usgs.gov/invasive_species/asian_carp.html USGS]
* [http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/OtherDocuments/ACBSRAFinalReport2005.pdf Kolar et al. 2005]