Carp Blitz Set for Kentucky, Barkley Lakes

[I]Netting effort being held Nov. 8-10 to help gauge number of Asian carp[/I]

[B]FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 25, 2016) — [/B]State and federal agencies, working in cooperation with volunteers, commercial anglers and fish processors, are launching a “Carp Blitz” on Nov. 8-10 to help gauge the population of invasive Asian carp in Kentucky and Barkley lakes.

At least a dozen sampling crews will be netting, electrofishing and working with licensed commercial anglers to collect as many Asian carp as possible during this three-day period.

“This very large effort is primarily a sampling or data collection exercise which, if deemed successful, will be repeated annually in order to provide relative abundance and population demographics of Asian carp in Kentucky and Barkley Lakes,” said Ron Brooks, fisheries director for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.

Other participating agencies will include the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

In 2013, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife sponsored Carp Madness, a first of its kind tournament for commercial anglers whose primarily goal was the thin the Asian carp population in the two western Kentucky lakes. It proved successful, as a handful of participants collected more than 83,000 pounds of Asian carp during the two-day tournament.

Brooks believes if weather conditions are good, the Carp Blitz effort will easily eclipse the Carp Madness tournament. State and federal fisheries crew will use electrofishing equipment to drive the wary Asian carp into the waiting nets of the commercial anglers.

“All Asian carp harvested will be donated to the commercial anglers assisting with this effort,” Brooks said. “Kentucky’s fish processing businesses will purchase all fish harvested.”

As part of the effort, researchers with Murray State University are working with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife to tag fish with telemetry markers. This will allow researchers to discover the movement patterns and habitat use of Asian carp in Kentucky and Barkley lakes.