Carp's Diet
Carp are the Minnow family's biggest member, with two types living in North America after their introduction from Asia. The common carp (Cyprinus carpio ) and the grass carp (carpioCtenopharyngodon idella ) have a wide distribution across the continent, with the two species enjoying different diets.
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Function
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Carp have pharyngeal teeth, a set of teeth positioned in the throat that grind up whatever the carp eats. Some of these pharyngeal teeth resemble the molars found in a human. No teeth exist in the carp's fleshy mouth, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources website.
Common Carp
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The common carp is an omnivore and the fish will eat algae, vegetation, mollusks, small fish, crayfish and insects. As it swims along the bottom of a river, lake or pond, the common carp will stir up the mud and silt with its snout. Anything edible the fish kicks up, it will swallow.
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Grass Carp
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The grass carp is not strictly a vegetarian, but the vast majority of its diet consists of aquatic grasses and weeds. The grass carp is capable of eating three times its body weight in plant matter in a single day, states the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.
Considerations
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People will put grass carp into their ponds to control the weed growth. The fish sucks down the weeds into its throat where its pharyngeal teeth chew it up.
Effects
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The grass carp has a reputation as an invasive species. In a wild setting it can eat and destroy vegetation that other wildlife depend heavily upon for food and shelter.
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References
- Photo Credit carp on Steroids image by Christine from Fotolia.com
