The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today added black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) to the list of injurious fish under the Lacey Act. This action will prohibit live black carp, gametes, viable eggs and hybrids from being imported into or transported between the continental United States, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territory or possession of the United States.
"This is an attempt to head off a potential problem," said H. Dale Hall, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "Black carp have the potential to cause major damage to America's native mussel populations, and we want to get out in front of the issue now. Stopping the transport of these fish is crucial to the future of our native aquatic species."
Black carp, also known as snail carp, black amur, or Chinese roach, is a freshwater fish that inhabits lakes and lower reaches of large, fast moving rivers and associated backwaters, including canals and reservoirs. Black carp can grow to more than three feet in length, weigh 33 pounds and individuals are known to live to at least 15 years of age. Adult black carp are bottom feeders that almost exclusively eat mollusks (mussels and snails) when available, but can eat insects, shrimp, commercial fish feeds and aquatic plants.
Powerful teeth permit the black carp to crush the thick shells of large mollusks, and one fish can consume a few pounds of mussels each day. The mouth of an adult black carp is much larger than most native mollusk-eating fish -- presenting a new threat to native mussel species.
Black carp originally entered the United States in 1973 as a "contaminant" in imported shipments of grass carp or other Chinese carp stocks. The second introduction of black carp took place in the early 1980s when it was used in fish production ponds in southeastern U.S. for biological control of a parasite, and as a potential food fish. Since that time black carp have become more commonly used and transported, particularly during the late 1990's to control another species of snail-borne parasite at primarily catfish and hybrid striped bass farms.
