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National Invasive Species Information Center
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Home / Aquatic Invasives / Fish and Other Aquatic Vertebrates / Grass Carp

Grass Carp

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Grass carp
Grass carp, adult - Photo by Pam Fuller; U.S. Geological Survey
Scientific Name: 

Ctenopharyngodon idella (Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1844) (ITIS)

Common Name: 

Grass carp, white amur

Native To: 

Eastern Asia (NAS Database)

Date of U.S. Introduction: 

1963 (NAS Database)

Means of Introduction: 

Imported for aquaculture and for phytoplankton control (NAS Database)

Impact: 

Direct and indirect impacts via: competition for food; significant changes in the composition of macrophyte, phytoplankton, and invertebrate communities; interference with the reproduction of other fishes; decreases in refugia for other fishes; modification of preferred habitat; predation or competition when plant food is scarce. Has significantly altered the food web and trophic structure of aquatic systems by inducing changes in plant, invertebrate, and fish communities (NAS Database)

Spotlights

Government of Canada Releases Socio-Economic Study on the Risk of Grass Carp to the Great Lakes (Mar 13, 2019)

Government of Canada.

Grass carp, one of four species of Asian carp, has the potential to disrupt the Great Lakes ecosystem and economy unless their spread is stopped, according to a report released by Fisheries and Oceans Canada with support from the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. The socio-economic study concludes that, in addition to the significant ecological threat that is posed by the presence of grass carp in the Great Lakes, there would also be economic, social and cultural ripple effects. The full report can be viewed here (PDF | 1.34 MB).

Distribution / Maps / Survey Status

Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: Point Map - Grass Carp
DOI. USGS. Wetland and Aquatic Research Center.
Provides detailed collection information as well as animated map.

Federally Regulated

Injurious Wildlife

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 United States or transport between the listed jurisdictions in the shipment clause (the continental United States, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any possession of the United States) 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.

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.
See also: Injurious Wildlife: A Summary of the Injurious Provisions of the Lacey Act (Dec 2017; PDF | 401 KB)

Images

Asian Carp Photos

Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee; Flickr.

Google Images - Grass carp
Google.
Invasive.org - Grass carp
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.

Videos

YouTube - Midwest Battles to Keep Invasive Asian Carp Out of the Great Lakes (Jan 2019)

Google. YouTube. PBS NewsHour.

Asian Carp Photos and Videos

Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee.

YouTube - The Threat of Grass Carp

Google. YouTube; Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Grass Carp.

Council or Task Force
Priority Species: Asian Carp

Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office. Washington Invasive Species Council.

Partnership
Asian Carp Control
Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee.
Global Invasive Species Database - Ctenopharyngodon idella (fish)
World Conservation Union. Invasive Species Specialist Group.
Invaders Factsheet: Asian Carps

Ontario's Invading Species Awareness Program (Canada).

Invasive Species Compendium - Ctenopharyngodon idella
CAB International.
New York Invasive Species Information - Asian Carp

New York Invasive Species Clearinghouse.

Texas Invasives Database - Ctenopharyngodon idella
TexasInvasives.org.
The Quiet Invasion: A Guide to Invasive Species of the Galveston Bay Area - Grass Carp; Bighead Carp; Silver Carp; Black Carp; Goldfish; Koi

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Galveston Bay Estuary Program; Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC).

Federal Government
Asian Carp in Southeastern Waters

DOI. FWS. Southeast Region.

Fisheries Program - Asian Carp
DOI. FWS. Midwest Region.
Mississippi National River and Recreation Area - Asian Carp Overview
DOI. National Park Service.
National Exotic Marine and Estuarine Species Information System (NEMESIS): Chesapeake Bay Introduced Species Database - Ctenopharyngodon idella

Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Marine Invasions Research Lab.

Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: Fact Sheet - Grass Carp
DOI. USGS. Wetland and Aquatic Research Center.
Provides distribution maps and collection information (State and County).
International Government
Identify an Aquatic Invasive Species: Asian Carp

Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

State and Local Government
Freshwater Aquatic Invasive Species in Rhode Island - Asian Carp (Sep 2017) (PDF | 1.07 MB)

Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Office of Water Resources.

See also: Aquatic Invasive Animals for species of concern

Pest Risk Assessment for Asian Carps in Oregon (Dec 15, 2009) (PDF | 90 KB)
Oregon State Library. Oregon Documents Repository.
Prepared by: Portland State University, Center for Lakes and Reservoirs
Asian Carp Control Efforts

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Asian Carp in Ohio

Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

California's Invaders: Grass Carp

California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Fisheries Management - Asian Carp Information
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.
Invasive Aquatic Animals: Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella)
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Academic
New York Sea Grant Fact Sheet - Asian Carp: Threats to the Lower Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River (2011) (PDF | 360 KB)
New York Sea Grant.
See also: Aquatic Invasive Species: Publications
AIS in Minnesota - Asian Carp

University of Minnesota. Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center.

See also: Asian carp research

Factsheet: Asian Carp
Pennsylvania State University. Pennsylvania Sea Grant.
See also: Aquatic Invasive Species: Resources for additional species information
Invasive Species Guide - Grass Carp
University of Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Professional
Exotic Species - Asian Carp
Great Lakes Fishery Commission. Fisheries Management.
Invasive Carp

Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council (Michigan).

Citations