Biggest Carp Haul In Minnesota Portion Of Upper Mississippi Announced

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced that agency officials caught hundreds of invasive carp in the biggest haul in Minnesota to date. Officials caught 296 silver carp, 23 grass carp and four bighead carp November 30 near Trempeleau, Minn.

Agency officials said they were alerted when the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources tracked six tagged invasive carp in that area of the river, which led officials to larger schools moving upstream. Observations from commercial anglers also helped officials pinpoint the fish.

A Minnesota DNR official told the Associated Press that while the numbers were “concerning,” the carp had likely moved upriver and didn’t hatch there.

Asian carp were imported in the 1960s to help southern aquaculture farms control weeds and algae. They escaped in floods and have spread rapidly ever since, outcompeting native species. There is a multi-billion-dollar effort underway to keep them out of the Great Lakes.