Editor’s note: This is the second article in a two-part series on fish that have been introduced into Kentucky waters.
Two non-native black bass species could potentially have bad impacts on Kentucky’s native fishes.
Five species of carp are the very definition of ugly fish introductions.
Here are some details:
• The Florida Bass
The Florida Bass (Micropterus floridanus) has never been stocked in Kentucky waters, however, some genetics from Florida Bass are present in bass populations in western Kentucky.
In recent years, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) has been stocking pure strain Florida Bass in several locations throughout the Tennessee River system, including the upper reaches of Kentucky Lake.
So, it is “highly likely that some individuals, or their offspring, have crossed into Kentucky waters and hybridized with our native northern Largemouth Bass,” according to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR). “Also, it is possible that individuals have unlawfully put Florida Bass or Florida Bass hybrids in other waterbodies in Kentucky.”
For more information on Florida Bass fw.ky.gov/FL_Bass_FAQ
• The Alabama Bass
The Alabama Bass (Micropterus henshalli) is native to rivers which drain into Mobile Bay in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia, and their impoundments.
This bass looks nearly identical to the Spotted Bass, and poses a major threat to native bass fisheries in Kentucky.
While there is no evidence that Alabama Bass are present in Kentucky waters, its introduction could prove disastrous for Kentucky black bass populations.
Alabama Bass have rapidly displaced and outcompeted the native Largemouth Bass in areas of North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina where they have been illegally introduced by anglers.
Alabama Bass rarely get larger than 1 to 2 pounds outside of their native range. They readily hybridize with Smallmouth Bass and Spotted Bass and have nearly eliminated those species through genetic mixing in invaded lakes.
Alabama Bass introductions in Kentucky could mean a total loss of Kentucky’s Spotted Bass fisheries or potentially the loss of the premier Smallmouth Bass fishery in Dale Hollow Lake.
“Research in other states suggests that even introducing small numbers of Alabama Bass can lead to a collapse in the native bass numbers in less than 10 years. Once established, no state has success fully been able to reduce Alabama Bass numbers or their negative effects on native bass populations,” according to KDFWR.
For more information about the Alabama Bass, visit fw.ky.gov/AL_Bass_FAQ
KDFWR also offers an informative video on the genetic repercussions of stocking these non-native black bass.
Ugly introductions
• The Red-Bellied Pacu
The Red-Bellied Pacu (Piaractus brachypomus) is native to South America’s Amazon River basin.
This exotic species is thought to have arrived in the U.S. in the 1960’s, but was not confirmed until 1980, in Travis County, Texas.
There have been at least six reports of Pacu being caught in Kentucky: 1991, Lake Cumberland; 1993, Lake Barkley; 1994 and 1999, Dewey Lake; 2006, Buckhorn Lake, and 2010, Paintsville Lake.
The pathway to introduction of Pacu was illegal releases from aquariums. This species has not become established here.
• Carp
With their high reproductive rate and few predators, Carp numbers can quickly climb to a high percentage of the water body’s carrying capacity of fish.
These invasive exotic species threaten Kentucky’s aquatic ecology by outcompeting native fishes for living space and food. Their populations in some areas are expanding at an alarming rate. They can consume up to 40 percent of their body weight in food each day, and can reach a weight of more than 85 pounds and a length of more than 40 inches once they have reached maturity.
Carp have been farmed for thousands of years in China and Europe as a source of food.
The five species of Carp in Kentucky waters are:
1. The Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) is found statewide, in all of Kentucky’s major river drainages, and large populations are present in many major lakes. The Common Carp was originally introduced to the U.S in the 1800s as a solution to the public’s demand for fresh fish.
2. Bighead Carp (Hypophthalmichthys mobilis) was imported in 1973 by a fish farmer in Arkansas who wanted to use them to control phytoplankton in rearing ponds.
In Kentucky this fish first appeared in the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, in the early 1980s, likely as a result of escapes from aquaculture facilities.
The Bighead Carp is a powerful filter-feeder with a
wide food spectrum. They grow fast and reproduce at 2 to 3 years old. The earliest encounter in Kentucky was in Livingston County on September 28, 1981.
3. The Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) was also imported into the U.S. in 1973 by a fish farmer in Arkansas.
In the late 1970s they were stocked in several municipal
sewage lagoons in Arkansas for phytoplankton control.
Fish escaped captivity from aquaculture facilities and by the 1980s were found in rivers in the region.
In North America the Silver Carp reproduces as early as two years old, and can live for 20 years. The earliest record of an encounter in Kentucky was in 1984 in Jefferson County.
4. The Black Carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) was imported in the 1970s into Arkansas as a food fish and biological control to combat the spread of yellow grub (Clinostomum margaritum) in aquaculture ponds. Fish escaped captivity from aquaculture facilities and were first encountered in Kentucky in 2016 in Ballard County.
5. The Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) has been stocked in Kentucky waters for decades.
Fish were first imported to the U.S. in 1963 to aquaculture facilities in Auburn, Alabama, and Stuttgart, Arkansas. The fish was first encountered in the wild in Kentucky in 1974 in Ballard County. The Grass Carp is a triploid, non-reproducing fish.
Grass Carp have been, and continue to be stocked into farm ponds, small lakes and a few major lakes as biological control for unwanted aquatic vegetation
Escapees from these stockings are taken regularly by hook and line by anglers, and shot by bow fishermen on larger streams and rivers, particularly in western Kentucky.
Impacts from the presence of these Carp species are egregious:
• Grass Carp consume aquatic vegetation and could drastically alter natural aquatic ecosystems, most importantly cypress sloughs and shallow wetlands.
• Black Carp feed on snails and small mussels, some of which may be threatened or endangered.
• Bighead Carp and Silver Carp feed on plankton, which is at the base of the food chain in aquatic environments.
• Silver Carp pose a threat to recreational boaters, water skiers and anglers. Vibrations from boat propellers excite the fish causing them to jump out of the water at a height of up to 9 feet, sometimes causing serious injuries to people in boats or in the water.
More information on invasive Carp species in Kentucky and their harvest by commercial fishermen is available at fw.ky.gov/Invasive-Carp-Information.
Art, you do great work! Your articles are very informative. You probably need to revisit this article as it relates to largemouth in Kentucky. Google the Kentucky Black Bass Genetics Report. Our state record was 60% Florida from a population that is also 60% Florida. Hard to claim a pure Northern population in this case. I lead non profit in eastern Kentucky called Anglers For Improving Opportunities, we were advocates for the most extensive DNA testing ever done in our state.