Do Grass Carp Eat Milfoil?
Grass carp eat just about anything in your pond, including Eurasian water milfoil. Milfoil grows as an invasive plant species in freshwater ponds and lakes. The use of grass carp helps keep the milfoil under control. Does this Spark an idea?
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Description
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Known as white amur, grass carp belong in the minnow family although they may get as big as 20 lbs. in small ponds. The fish live up to 10 years of age or more. Milfoil causes large, floating mats of vegetation that squeeze out other plant species while depleting the water of oxygen.
Restrictions
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Some states require landowners to only stock their ponds with triploid grass carp. Triploid grass carp are sterile, so they cannot reproduce and cause ecological damage to native aquatic plants. Some states require the purchase of permits to use triploid grass carp.
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Benefits
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The fish often get stocked in ponds to help control milfoil from spreading. The fish are one of the few species that primarily eat plants, making them valuable in ponds and lakes where they eat up to 100 percent of their body weight each day as long as the water stays warm.
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References
- Ohio State University Extension: Using Grass Carp to Control Aquatic Plants
- Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency: Fish for Stocking in New or Renovated Ponds
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Chinese Grass Carp
- National Park Service Plant Conservation Alliance's Alien Plant Working Group: Eurasian Watermilfoil
