This week’s poll is a hotly debated subject: Should Carp be Considered an Official Game Fish?
Let us know what you think by voting in the poll below. Be sure to leave a comment letting us know why you chose your answer!
Don’t forget to tune into the Livestream on Tuesday, October 6th at 6:00 PM EST to see the final results presented and discussed by one of our resident Carp experts!
FINAL RESULTS – October 6th, 2020
The Fish’n Canada team has never been silent with our opinion to the validity of Carp angling and of the fish species known as the Common and Mirror Carp. Simply put, we love Carp fishing!
Indeed, they are an invasive species. But with that said, they are so far away from something like the Cormorant (link to Poll #7) on the death and destruction scale.
On the negative side of things, the biggest problem that Carp pose is the uprooting of aquatic vegetation. This creates sediment, disturbs phytoplankton, and can ultimately contribute to an algae bloom. An algae bloom can cause a fish kill.
With that said, let us use a water body like Rice Lake as an example. Rice has a huge Carp population. Every spring, the weedy shallows of Rice Lake are alive with the splashing and frolicking of Carp. Has this contributed to a fish kill? Well, only science can tell us that answer and according to a recent study, Rice Lake has one of the highest bio-mass per hectare count of any water body in the province. In other words, it’s alive and well with a variety of fish species—including our beloved Carp!
We all know now that Carp are here to stay. So, we ask this question: What do you think a young angler just getting into fishing would rather catch, a small Carp (which is considered about 8-10 pounds) or a big Yellow Perch? Let’s face it: Carp fishing is fun!