Kentucky Anglers Take on Asian Carp

photo credit: American Monsters

The explosion in growth of the Asian carp in Kentucky lakes has anglers doing their part to manage the population by participating in a tournament at Kentucky and Barkley lakes.

After escaping from fish farms in the 1970s, Asian carp have spread across the United States, threatening food sources and basically causing other fish species to be starved out of lakes.

This is true in two of Kentucky's more popular lakes, thus the fishing tournament to remove some of the pressure from the invasive species.

According to Fish and Wildlife fisheries director Ron Brooks, the first day of the tournament on Tuesday resulted in approximately 38,000 pounds of carp being caught.

The hope of Kentucky wildlife officials, who organized the event, is that about 100 tons of carp are removed from the two lakes over the two days the tournament is going on.

Asian carp breed extremely fast and can grow to over 100 pounds. They can also eat up to 40 percent of their body weight daily.