Can Asian Carp Slip in the Back Door?

Public attention and millions of federal dollars are being aimed at stopping Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes via Chicago waterways.  But, few people are aware that fisheries scientists are monitoring for the invasive exotic species in Lake Erie.  In fact, a few Asian carp have already been found there.  

A six-year-old Asian carp was captured near Cedar Point, Ohio in May 1995, and another adult was caught in Sandusky Bay, Ohio in June 2000.  Then in October 2000, a three-foot long Asian carp was captured in a commercial trap net in the shallow waters west of Point Pelee, Ontario.  This was the first Asian carp recorded in Canadian waters and researchers compared its growth and development with that of the 1995 (U.S. waters) fish using scale and bone samples.  They concluded both fish were likely grown in ponds (a controlled environment) for a couple of years before being released or escaping into Lake Erie.  

Most Michigan fisheries biologists seem to be unaware that Asian carp have been found in Lake Erie.  Two fisheries biologists in Ohio I spoke with suggested the fish were likely planted by individuals in the Toronto area where there are markets for Asian carp.  An Ontario fisheries biologist opined the fish came from ponds in Ohio.  So, apparently nobody knows for sure where the fish came from.  

It is also not apparent what it all means.  A handful of fish of a given species may occupy, but never populate, a body of water.  But while biologists say that’s likely the case with Asian carp in Lake Erie, they are still monitoring for the invasive species.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is searching for Asian Carp in about 750 miles of streams entering Lake Erie, while Ontario plans to soon monitor for Asian carp in the Thames River.  

A group of Ontario fisheries scientists noted in a related 2004 publication, “While connecting water like the (Chicago Sanitary and Shipping) canal are likely sources for continued invasion, prevention of introduction/escapement through educating aquarists, fish farmers, and the general public is the most critical action needed to limit the future spread of Hypopthalmichthys or other non-indigenous fishes into novel watersheds.”   It would certainly be tragic if huge sums are spent on barriers, and then individuals thwart that effort by planting Asian carp or allowing them to escape into the Great Lakes.  

Dr. Patrick J. Rusz
Director of Wildlife Programs

[Return to Newsletter Index]