29
Apr
2013
CHICAGO - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) today, April 26, released "Asian Carp Distribution in North America," which displays current data on the presence of bighead carp and silver carp at all life stages, as well as black carp and grass carp occurrences, in the Mississippi River, Ohio River and Great Lakes. The maps can be found at: http://www.asiancarp.us/pr
"The intent of this succinct, graphical documentation of locations of Asian carp individual captures, as well as areas with established populations, is to be a 'living resource' for ACRCC partners, decision makers and the public to access specific, timely information," said USACE Fish Biologist and eDNA Program Manager Kelly Baerwaldt.
Data were compiled through responses to an Asian Carp Questionnaire that was distributed to biologists at federal, state, academic, private-consulting and non-governmental organizations; the ACRCC Mon! itoring and Response Work Group, which include data since 2009 in detail for the Chicago Area Waterway System and a majority of the Illinois Waterway; and the USGS's Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database.
"The ACRCC continues to take the threat of Asian carp as very real and to conduct intensive monitoring to help determine the threat of this invasive fish," said Baerwaldt.
Zero Asian carp were captured or observed above the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal electric barriers in the last two years after hundreds of interagency monitoring trips, including 192 hours of electrofishing and nearly 82 miles of traditional netting, which resulted in the capture of nearly 100,000 fish of other species.
"The intent of this succinct, graphical documentation of locations of Asian carp individual captures, as well as areas with established populations, is to be a 'living resource' for ACRCC partners, decision makers and the public to access specific, timely information," said USACE Fish Biologist and eDNA Program Manager Kelly Baerwaldt.
Data were compiled through responses to an Asian Carp Questionnaire that was distributed to biologists at federal, state, academic, private-consulting and non-governmental organizations; the ACRCC Mon! itoring and Response Work Group, which include data since 2009 in detail for the Chicago Area Waterway System and a majority of the Illinois Waterway; and the USGS's Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database.
"The ACRCC continues to take the threat of Asian carp as very real and to conduct intensive monitoring to help determine the threat of this invasive fish," said Baerwaldt.
Zero Asian carp were captured or observed above the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal electric barriers in the last two years after hundreds of interagency monitoring trips, including 192 hours of electrofishing and nearly 82 miles of traditional netting, which resulted in the capture of nearly 100,000 fish of other species.
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