bighead carp

Permanent barrier against the invasive species of fish, will not be constructed in the Chicago area.

Governor Ted Strickland is getting about half of what he pleaded the White House to do in a July 8th letter about the Asian Carp problem. As you know, the Asian carp are entering into Lake Michigan, and if not stopped, it could become a colossal problem!

“They are going to be naming a carp commander,” explained the legislative liaison for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Trish Lanahan. “It’s important to have someone in an executive-level position at the White House.”

Time is quickly running out, giving the upper hand to the devastating pair of invading fish known as Asian Carp. These two fish are more commonly known as the bighead carp and the silver carp, and have already taken over many areas of the Mississippi River drainage after craftily escaping their fish farms a few decades ago.

Something obviously needs to be done.. However the jury is still out as to what. Something which definitely is not being considered as a viable solution, despite the opinions of Ohio executives, is building a permanent barrier at Chicago, beginning no later than the 19th of August.

Ohio, in conjunction with other great lake States, got a lawsuit on the roll Monday, which is aimed at forcing the government along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to close off the canal without any further deliberation.

On Thursday, all the big players got together to announce their plans to sit down to analyze economic and environmentally friendly solutions to effectively separate the Mississippi basin from the Great Lakes at Chicago.

Neither species of the carp is though to have gotten a stronghold in Lake Michigan. If they did have a stronghold there, that would render any sort of barrier useless. If they do get themselves a stronghold, it could take a few years before the invading carp can get themselves set up in Lake Erie.

The major concern is that the carp, as with other invasive species, could spread like wildfire through ship bilge and ballast water. The dumping of ballast is not really monitored properly, and certainly not enforced.

However, Chicago isn’t the only one to show concern.

The Silver carp have been slowly creeping their way up the Wabash River in Indiana. There is a bit of wetland that separates the headwaters of the Wabash and the Maumee rivers in Indiana. Biologists from both Indiana and Ohio are examining whether or not if the flooding which occurs there, might just give the carp a chance to jump into the Lake Erie basin.

“I don’t think it’s the threat’s immediate, like Chicago,” the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s program administrator for Lake Erie, Roger Knight said. “It might be another avenue they can use to get in.”

Well if that is the attitude taken by all sides.. That the “threat is not imminent” then it will be too little too late to help get rid of this problem.. One can hope a plan of action is formulated quickly.

Goldfish - Not the one in story.

Nick Richards, a 16 year old fishing enthusiast from the UK, reeled in a whopper of a goldfish from a lake in Poole. The fish weighs an astounding 5 lbs, which is only 2 lbs less than the world record for goldfish. By all accounts it appears to be the biggest goldfish ever caught in Britain, and the youngster is quite pleased with the catch. He had set out to catch a common carp, which happen to be in the same family as the goldfish, but instead he reeled in this golden monster.

This is quite a catch, considering that goldfish are only generally 1 inch to 9 inches long, and generally do not weigh in at any more than however they do have the habit of growing to suit their surroundings. Another reason this is such an amazing catch is that goldfish can generally only survive in tropical to subtropical waters, and any sudden changes in temperature can be potentially fatal for the fish.

When asked to comment on the catch he had this to say, “Apparently it’s the biggest ever caught in the UK. I’ve heard it weighs only 2lb less than the world record.”

I would hate to burst the kids’ bubble, but while this may be the largest goldfish in the UK, the record still goes to the goldfish discovered on the west coast of Thailand in the Andaman Sea. That fish measured a staggering 2.5 meters long, by 1.70 meters tall! No weight was given for the monstrous fish, but I guarantee it was a wee bit over 7 lbs. Sorry kid, better luck next time.

That being said, no one can say for sure just how the goldfish Nick caught got into the lake, however there are a few generalized ideas which may explain the phenomenon.

It is believed that the goldfish started out as one of the prizes commonly doled out at fairgrounds in Dorset town, but was later abandoned when it got too big to live in its bowl. It is not an uncommon occurrence for prize goldfish such as these to be tossed into lakes and ponds, as the owners get bored of them, or they do not want to be bothered with finding more suitable living arrangements when they outgrow their bowl.

This is good news for fishing enthusiasts such as Nick, as they can sometimes reel in a whopper from surrounding lakes, and have a good fish story to tell. However it should be noted that the majority of the goldfish which are tossed aside as yesterday’s news, often don’t make it long enough in the wild to be considered today’s news.

It is not known what Nick plans to do with the fish, however you can rest assured it is most likely not going into his frying pan.