Invasive Species: Bigheaded Carp

Invasive Species: Bigheaded Carp — page 1

Invasive Species: Bigheaded Carp — page 2 — SEARCHING FOR FOOD A buffalo fish swims along the bottom of the Mississippi River The fish is looking for tiny organisms to eat But it cannot find enough food That’s because the Mississippi River has become crowded with silver carp This species of bigheaded carp eats similar foods as the buffalo fish With so many carp there is Young silver carp tend to be more silvery than adults 5 CHAPTER 1

Invasive Species: Bigheaded Carp — page 3 — less food for the other fish in the river This puts the buffalo fish in danger There are two kinds of bigheaded carp in North America Silver carp is one The other is called bighead carp Its name can be confusing because it is very similar to the group’s name But bighead carp is a specific species of carp And bigheaded carp ending with ed is the group Bighead and silver carp are filter feeders They eat algae and other tiny organisms They also eat tiny particles and bits of dead plants and animals Both fish are invasive species in the United States People brought the two species there in the 1970s The carp 6

Invasive Species: Bigheaded Carp — page 4 — A scientist holds a silver carp left and a bighead carp spread into rivers draining into the Mississippi Huge numbers of carp now live in many rivers of the central United States They have changed aquatic food webs in a number of ways 7

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