The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will again be searching the Illinois Waterway from the western Chicago suburbs to the La Salle-Peru area for invasive fish.
This event has been rescheduled for August 10-13 after being postponed in June due to flooding in the waterway.
During the "Carp Corral/Goby Roundup," biologists will attempt to determine the relative abundance and upstream distribution of the bighead and silver carp?two invasive Asian carp species?and chart the downstream leading edge of the round goby. Biologists will also collect fish health samples to detect pathogens such as the non-native spring viremia of carp virus.
Members of the media are invited for a first-hand experience with a field crew on Wednesday, August 11, or Thursday, August 12. Sampling covers a 100-mile stretch of the Illinois Waterway from Alsip to La Salle-Peru. Abundant goby populations may be seen at the upstream sites and jumping silver carp will be collected at downstream areas.
Contact Pam Thiel at 608-783-8431 by Thursday, August 5, for more information or to secure a space. Space is limited and will be given on a first-come, first-served basis.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
