However, their introduced populations persist across the globe. Some parasites of … As the standard of living the average European and Englishman improved, so did the availability of carp. Three hundred and forty-five common carp were brought over from Bremen, Germany, and propagated by the commission. By the 1920s, the Mississippi river had become one of the world's best carp fishing hotspots. North America Thus, the health of numerous small lakes and fisheries has suffered from the presence of the carp. Asian carps were brought from Asia to North America in the 1960s and 70s. Saint Paul, MN … Asian carp, any of several species of fish belonging to the carp family (Cyprinidae) that are native to eastern Asia, particularly China and Russia, and naturalized in some American waterways. Within the next 2 years, every major river in Illinois had been stocked with the newly imported fish. So … True carp are not native to the Americas-- carp are fish of Asia and Europe, and in fact are currently posing problems as invasive species in the US and Canada. A few populations are also present in the Great Lakes region of the United States, living in similar shallow waters. MS Rpt. And when noticed at all, it's held in disdain. Carp are also used as clan animals in some Native American cultures. Carp are found in almost every fishery in the nation, and most still have plenty of good fishing. This angler, beached on sand flats below the 3rd Avenue bridge in Minneapolis, holds a carp recently caught in the river. This is the general phone line at the Mississippi River Visitor Center. In the early 19th Century, this species was introduced into the United States, and it quickly thereafter became popular as a food source for human consumption in North America. invasive and threaten the integrity of native fish species and ecosystems as their spread progresses throughout the Mississippi River Basin of North America. Since then they have migrated north through U.S. waterways towards the Great Lakes. The account below was researched and written by Rob Buffler & Tom Dickson in the late 1980s and later published in their book, Fishing for Buffalo. In the case of all carp species, they intentionally were introduced to North America. Why do they grimace at the thought of eating a fish served in fancy Parisian hotels, and roll their eyes at the suggestion they pursue a quarry prized by millions of anglers across the Atlantic? Standing on clear-cut hillsides with a bucket of garbage in each hand, they looked down on the rivers, saw carp swirling happily in the mess humans had created, and made a correlation — albeit the wrong one — between the rise of carp and the fall of game fish. As the carp is both a prodigious reproducer and highly tolerant of pollution, it spreads quickly through waters in which most native species cannot live. Carp have only been here since the German, Julius A Poppe brought 5 survivors to a pond in California in 1872. The commission believed the easily farmed, high yielding carp could replace native gamefish in the American diet, and they promptly imported 345 different carp varieties. 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