# End of Lake Erie - Asian Carp Article - 11/30/09



## Tommybouy (Jun 5, 2005)

I read this article after it was brought to my attention. I thought I would share as the article was released on 11/30/09.

I dont see where it reads the carp has been located but they seem very concerned or possibly show great respect for this threat. FYI.


http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...carp.ART_ART_11-30-09_A1_9EFRDBA.html?sid=101


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## FISHIN216 (Mar 18, 2009)

that really sucks! and damn those fish are ugly! UCH!!!


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## bcnulater (May 7, 2007)

I guess the first question to ask is Are the agencys handling this situation sufficiently funded and staffed. Too many times we assume "Someone" has it all under control and can fix the problem. Does anyone kow if there's a letter writing campaign to our elected officials? Thinking pro-actively here that we as fishermen and conservationists need to get involved before it's too late!


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## Big Daddy (Apr 6, 2004)

There is going to be a discussion on the Asian carp this weekend on "Inside the Great Outdoors" radio. Sunday morning, 8am til 10am, on 1420AM WHK.

You can listen on the Internet through the link provided in the right hand margin of this page. It's the box labeled "Inside the Great Outdoors".


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## Lightman (Jul 22, 2008)

It sounds like the authorities believe these fish are on the brink of making it into Lake Michigan, and that they were considering sterilizing an entire section of water in Illinois as only one Lock that opens and closes regularly was keeping them from entry. It may be too late  All I know is this was a major government screwup that these fish were brought here and escaped in the first place, they really need to fix this! If anyone finds somewhere we can proactively participate/encourage a solution please post it, these really could be the end of all of our beloved species in the great lakes.


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

I was working in indiana this spring on got the opprutunity to fish in one of the areas that is overrun with these guys catching many fish each time out.there is alot that needs to be learned about them before we label them the future demise of a fishery like we did the zebra mussel and goby, which have caused changes to our fisheries but have proved to be beneficial to some aspects. hopefully they find a way to stop them from extending there range but if they do get the rods ready because we found out that they do bite well on conventional items and pull hard fighting well. we caught over 20 fish a day in our attempt to help eliminate them...one of the oddiest fish i have ever caught i will try to post a pic...


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

heres on of those uglies


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## sploosh56 (Dec 31, 2008)

I am in the works of attempting to organize a carp tournament on the Portage River for next spring. I want to see how many pounds of common carp can be rid from the river and if any of these grass carp are caught. 

The common carp are bad for the ecosystem since they destroy habitat and muddy the water, but these asian carp are just plain nasty. I've seen some videos on you tube of the severely infested areas and it's unbelievable.!

Just out of curiosity, how interested would any of you be in participating in a carp tournament just to lower the population similar to the white perch tournaments that I've seen on here?


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## Stars-n-Stripers (Nov 15, 2007)

Article on Yahoo today regarding efforts to keep them out of Great Lakes.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_great_lakes_asian_carp

Tommy


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## ProAngler (Feb 23, 2009)

Offshore Limits-- I guess I'm misguided, can you explain some benefits of gobies and zebra's to L.E. other then the native species feed on the gobies and that zebra's clear up the water? 



Today they are dumping the toxins while they supposedly fix the barrier fence. This article raises many questions, just like this quote.

"Early Wednesday, the DNR will remove and relocate any sport fish from the canal so they are not harmed by the rotenone, Solano said. She estimated the cost of the operation at between $1 million and $2 million" UMMM WHAT? They are going to remove ALL SPORTFISH from the canal so not to be harmed! REALLY?I'd like to see how they plan on doing that!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_great_lakes_asian_carp


I think the fence is just fine, I think the problem is they got out and now the phase at attempting to kill the majority off after failure of this electronic fence will begin tonight. I still ask myself one question, Why were there any Asian Carp fish farms along the Mississippi River in the first place?


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

You hit it on the head..once both of these invasives were found in erie most biologist and fisherman predicted the absolute demise of sportfish to these, while they do not belong in erie they have not meant the destruction of sportfish stocks as predicted. The water clarity has been improved which has been a problem for those not willing to change tactics but has been a boom to open water trolling. The gobies are providing an incredible food source to the smallmouth, walleyes and perch with all 3 showing increased size averages for there age classes, while the are eating nesting bass eggs. Some therioze that walleyes are using mussel beds in the eastern end as viable spawning habitat where none exsisted prior... basically Im just saying that it didnt turn out as bad as most everyone predicted....Im more concerned about rampant dumping of toxins into our waterways


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## FINSEEKER II (Aug 19, 2009)

I say bring in the zander and let them eat all the invasive species. They say that the zander intro to lake erie would destroy the eco system, exactly what will these carp do. Hell we may as well have fun until 2012. All joking aside, the best way to rid an area of an unwanted is to inject a predator of the species. If you have mice, traps aren't working, try a big, fat, hungry cat and see what happens. Mice gone, shoot the cat.


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## TBONE123456789 (Sep 8, 2008)

Love em or hate em, Good or bad, once they are here there is little anyone can do to get rid of em. Ive been watching the species for over a year and as far as I know, no one has been sucessfull in getting rid of them. One thought though, if we tell the catfisher's its the "new shad" they will hunt them forever for bait!
Tom


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## RStock521 (Jul 17, 2008)

there was a segment on CBS Nightly News about the Asian Carp about to enter the great lakes. They said they can weigh between 40 and 80lbs and eat half their weight everyday!


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## Doctor (Apr 5, 2004)

They are not fun at all, we see them more and more on the Ohio River they just erupt out of the water and we are talking some big fish that can jump high out of the water, they bounce off the boat, you go to drop an anchor and they just blast out of the water, have had a few hit the deck they bleed profusely and the smell is nasty, they look like a Blue that has been turned upside down, I have thrown the cast net and think I have a bunch of Sumo Shad and these things are in the net and they are dripping with goo, have never really seen any small ones they are all huge, they have ruined the Illinois river, I don't fish Erie but I would really hate to see them get a handhold on that fishery, we try to stay out of any shallow water for fear of them coming over the deck.............Doc


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## sploosh56 (Dec 31, 2008)

why doesn't the DNR do a complete fish kill of the river? The ecosystem is already destroyed so why not just end all of the life in the river and then stock it in the future with the native species


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

Hey sploosh... that was a point I was making about this ..where I was catching all the bighead asian carp at was also one of the best allaround fisheries I have seen. It was a great walleye, sauger,muskie,hybrid striper spots I have seen in a river. There was one small stretch of water where I was catching between 20 to 30 shovelnose sturgeon each time out. there were dumpsters placed for us to put in the asian carp. I dont think the total wipeout of a river is the solution. You would not be able to control the killing agent as it went downstream. Again this is where one of the highest concentrations of bigheads exsist and there was still an excellent sportfish population below them.


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## ERIE REBEL (Jan 28, 2006)

Okay guys these things eat plankton.Which is what our walleye,perch,Smallmouth and every firstborn fish feed on.The only difference that these fish NEVER stop eating it.These fish can grow to one-hundred pounds and as stated will eat between forty to fifty percent of thier own body weight every day.We do not want these critters in the great lakes.


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## FSHNERIE (Mar 5, 2005)

This has been going on for many,many years.I doubt they can be stopped.


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## bcnulater (May 7, 2007)

Here's todays article from the Chicago Tribune, sounds like they're on top of this situation.

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/12/state-to-wage-chemical-war-on-asian-carp-tonight.html

and an excerpt:After officials launched what's believed to be the largest deliberate fish kill in state history Wednesday night, biologists sifted through the carnage at dump sites along the popular shipping canal near Romeoville. But by late this evening, they had identified just one 22-inch Asian carp, an invasive fish that officials say has the potential to devastate the region's commercial fishing industry if allowed to enter the Great Lakes.

Though some might question a three-day, $3 million fish kill if few Asian carp are found, biologists know the fewer carp discovered, the better the long-term health of the popular shipping canal.


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## Alaskan (Jun 19, 2007)

Are these "authorities" the same who've missed the mark for years on the cormorants? By god if they say the carp are about to enter the Great Lakes near Chicago, you can figure they are already half way to the St. Lawrence River by now.


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## Tmoney (Jun 16, 2006)

Has anyone ever eaten an Asian Carp? What do they taste like?


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

I never tried any of the ones I was catching. I read an article about how good they were after I came back home from that trip...They didnt look too appetizing...they eat more than plankton too as the EXPERTS claim.....these are the same experts taking care of the comorant and lamprey problems....I hope they dont make it too the great lakes but if they do Ill be spooling up some heavier tackle and doing my part to eliminate them


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## whjr15 (Jun 16, 2005)

Man, how are you touching that?! Hahaha, definitely one of the ugliest fish I've ever seen.



Offshore Limits said:


> heres on of those uglies


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## Offshore Limits (Dec 23, 2007)

I took off about 30 one day..I brought one back home to let evrone at the bait shoppe a chance to actually see what they looked like. More people stopped bye to see it hanging up than any other fish they had there...


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## getitgetit (Apr 21, 2009)

LOOK if we can almost make a FISH exstinct then we can get rid of these things. we just got to fish for then net them with big nets like they do with other fish and make FISH STICKS out of them


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## rod bender bob (May 19, 2004)

Offshore Limits said:


> I never tried any of the ones I was catching. I read an article about how good they were after I came back home from that trip...They didnt look too appetizing...they eat more than plankton too as the EXPERTS claim.....these are the same experts taking care of the comorant and lamprey problems....I hope they dont make it too the great lakes but if they do Ill be spooling up some heavier tackle and doing my part to eliminate them


How did you catch them since they're plankton and alge eaters?


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## slaughtereyez (Jul 13, 2009)

cant they catch some that are already exist in the systems and inject them with some kind of disease that would only spread through them spawning with each other and kill them off?.....just a thought....


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## Bass n' Fool (Apr 12, 2004)

slaughtereyez said:


> cant they catch some that are already exist in the systems and inject them with some kind of disease that would only spread through them spawning with each other and kill them off?.....just a thought....


I was thinking the samething, we could make something now, problem is we still dont know enough to control it. So we would have to worry about it mutating and crossing species. Someday in the not too far future though we will be able to safely apply a genetic solution to these types of problems.


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## BassMaster09 (Feb 25, 2008)

sploosh56 said:


> I am in the works of attempting to organize a carp tournament on the Portage River for next spring. I want to see how many pounds of common carp can be rid from the river and if any of these grass carp are caught.
> 
> The common carp are bad for the ecosystem since they destroy habitat and muddy the water, but these asian carp are just plain nasty. I've seen some videos on you tube of the severely infested areas and it's unbelievable.!
> 
> Just out of curiosity, how interested would any of you be in participating in a carp tournament just to lower the population similar to the white perch tournaments that I've seen on here?


i would be very interrested! i go almost everyday during the spring and summer. i do quite a work on those nasty fish


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## 10fish (May 12, 2005)

A bounty...... Instead of dropping millions on "tests" have the state pay $1 per fish caught and certified at a qualifying local bait and tackle shop. People that have the time to really "clean-up" on this idea are probably the ones that are out of work and could use the cash. 

Forget shovel ready jobs, I vote for rod and reel ready jobs........

just think about it????????


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

Way back when I was younger it was Sea Lamprey.any one know where or what happen to them.I use pull fish out lake Erie and they was sucking the fish.some times just a sore was on these fish if they got it off.most I see had them was walleyes.there mouth was a big sucker thing.ugly as ever and it stuck to fish and some how they got to sucking the fishes blood out was beyound me.most fish died as no blood.but if they let go there was a big sore like big boil or cancer,ulcer..I was afraid even try pull them off and just threw the fish back.I got lot them back then.they was to been in water that was a ballast water from some where and Im not sure where.last I knew you was not to dump your ballast water in lake.I have not seen or heard them geezz for so long I forgot about them.back before that some enzime in soap was poluting the lake thus fish died.and even back more DDT was washing in Erie that too killed fish.Erie then had name dead lake.even the carp,sheep head was near gone.while all this happen I never went there fish say for 10 to 15 years.as no fish why go there.


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## Carpn (Apr 5, 2004)

Here are some pics of bigheads we have shot while bowfishing...


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## B Thomas (Jan 21, 2005)

keep shootin' them and keep em south


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## Justin S (Mar 31, 2007)

didnt see this thread till after i posted, check out the petition in the lounge


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## Bigmtman (Feb 4, 2008)

Let me tell you all these fish suck big time.I was born in Southern ILL and moved to Ohio in 1984 and never heard of these fish.Well in and around 1995 some of these fish started to show up in our two big rivers back home and now it is crazy full of them.Some fish farms raised them and when the rivers over flowed the banks like they do every spring and fall the fish farms ponds got swamped and the crap swam out into the rivers and then all HELL broke out a few years later.
Now when we go back home there are soooo many of these carp that every other fish from cat fish to blue gills are going a way and cat fishing is a very big sport back home.Bow hunting them is a fun way catch them because there are thousands of them.
But this past summer my 12 year old son went back home to spend some time with family and my bother-in-law took him cat fishing on the river and during the boat ride down the river he thought it was real cool to watch these carp fly up out of the water,
5 flew in the boat and one hit my son in the chest and bruised him pretty bad scared him to death.So these fish are a real problem and very dangerous to say the least.They also do a lot of trot line,back pole and netting of cat fish on these two river but now with all these carp problems this to is getting to be a pain in the a$$.


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## Greydog (Mar 24, 2007)

Well I guess it is just a matter of time now before these carp make it to the big lakes. It was in today's papers that a federal court refused to grant a temporary injunction that would have closed the canal that connects to the Great Lakes. The federal government argued against the injunction saying thay the electrical barriers are keeping the carp out. The shipping industry carries a lot of weight- in other words they make bigger campaign contributions than sportsman. Money talks.


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## raider44 (Jun 29, 2008)

One of the biggest problems is our commander in chief is from Illinois, and does not want to sacrifice the money brought into his home state by shipping from the great lakes. Closing the canal would undoubtedly hurt the economy of Chicago. However, not closing the canal resorts in rolling the dice with these monsters.

If the carp make it to the great lakes it could be devastating. Some say they will not be able to survive/thrive in an open area such as a lake, as well as the deeper water that makes up lake michigan. Others say that they will take over, eating all the bait fish, reproducing, and possible putting sportfishing in jeopardy.

There are no clear cut answers that solve this problem. Closing the canal means fish have a low to no percent chance to get into the lakes, however Chicago will suffer, until another option surfaces. Dumping poison into the water brings up the probability of hurting the ecosystem/water just as the carp do. Relying on the electric fences is unreliable...

As the cliché goes; "somethings gotta give"


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## 10fish (May 12, 2005)

I'm still stuck on the idea of a bounty. Pay people for their catch. Have derbys and tourneys. The solution is in the power of the people, not chemicals. Closing the canal or an electric fence, hmmm ever see a bird take a fish? Sounds like a free ride over any barrier.


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## Nikster (Mar 14, 2007)

sploosh56 said:


> why doesn't the DNR do a complete fish kill of the river? The ecosystem is already destroyed so why not just end all of the life in the river and then stock it in the future with the native species


1st. Lets put the blame were it belongs. Arkansaw fish farms are on the top of the list. They are the ones to point a finger at.

Asian carps hen made their way up the Mississippi' Hold on to your hats;

*They have been found in Minnesota.*

Holding on to your hats get ready with the other hand & hold on to your pants!

They are in *OHIO* also.

Sad to say but its true, lets kill off everyone in Arkansaw. 

Nik


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## highstickn (Dec 25, 2009)

More Asian Carp information

Asian Carp Management


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## highstickn (Dec 25, 2009)

Sorry, unable to post the link.
Try
3 x w.asiancarp.org/rapidresponse/


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## stac573 (Jan 26, 2010)

this is pretty scary. Not to mention these are some pretty ugly fish


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

Doom and gloom at it's finest. People should really try to educate themselves on a subject before they cast their opinion. Otherwise people look foolish.


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