Carp / en Asian grass carp pose ecological threat to Great Lakes: 福利姬自慰scientist part of Canadian-American research team /news/asian-grass-carp-pose-ecological-threat-great-lakes-u-t-scientist-part-canadian-american <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Asian grass carp pose ecological threat to Great Lakes: 福利姬自慰scientist part of Canadian-American research team </span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-01-27-grass-carp.jpg?h=8f90f55b&amp;itok=X_l0xFxn 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-01-27-grass-carp.jpg?h=8f90f55b&amp;itok=F4pmfaUT 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-01-27-grass-carp.jpg?h=8f90f55b&amp;itok=Fw-1Lk0x 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-01-27-grass-carp.jpg?h=8f90f55b&amp;itok=X_l0xFxn" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-01-27T15:10:56-05:00" title="Friday, January 27, 2017 - 15:10" class="datetime">Fri, 01/27/2017 - 15:10</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">福利姬自慰biologist Nick Mandrak says that while not all invasive species have a high ecological impact, grass carp are voracious eaters, capable of consuming 40 per cent of their body weight per day (photo by Ken Jones) </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/don-campbell" hreflang="en">Don Campbell</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Don Campbell</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/breaking-research" hreflang="en">Breaking Research</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/fisheries" hreflang="en">fisheries</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/great-lakes" hreflang="en">Great Lakes</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/carp" hreflang="en">Carp</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/u-t-scarborough" hreflang="en">福利姬自慰Scarborough</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/ecology" hreflang="en">ecology</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Asian grass carp&nbsp;pose a significant ecological threat to the Great Lakes and that threat could be extreme over the next 50 years.&nbsp;</p> <p>This is the major finding of <a href="http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/csas-sccs/Publications/SAR-AS/2016/2016_057-eng.html">a large binational risk assessment</a> authored by a team of American and Canadian researchers, including <strong>Nick Mandrak</strong>, associate professor of biological sciences at 福利姬自慰Scarborough.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淲e don鈥檛 want grass carp&nbsp;in the Great Lakes, and we need to act now in order to eradicate the population in the Sandusky River,鈥 says Mandrak, referring to the grass carp population already spawning in the Sandusky River in Ohio, which is connected to Lake Erie.&nbsp;</p> <p>The peer-reviewed study, led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada and coordinated by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, has&nbsp;researchers from Fisheries and Oceans Canada, U of T, the U.S. Geological Survey&nbsp;and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.&nbsp;</p> <p>Mandrak himself has conducted risk assessments on silver and big head carp in the past&nbsp;and also authored the first Canadian risk assessment of Asian carp&nbsp;in 2004 when he worked at Fisheries and Oceans Canada.&nbsp;</p> <p>He says while not all invasive species have a high ecological impact, grass carp are different. For one, they鈥檙e voracious eaters, capable of consuming 40 per cent of their body weight per day. As a result, they can grow quite large, up to 30 cm long in their first year of life, meaning they have no natural predators in the Great Lakes. They also produce a lot of eggs, which means even in the short period of time when they can be eaten by larger fish, there are often too many to make a dent in their numbers.</p> <p>And if you think a cold Canadian climate will deter them, think again. Mandrak has done field research on grass carp living in Siberian lakes covered by more than a metre of ice.</p> <p><img alt class="media-image attr__typeof__foaf:Image img__fid__3286 img__view_mode__media_original attr__format__media_original" height="563" src="/sites/default/files/grass-carp.jpg" typeof="foaf:Image" width="750" loading="lazy"><br> <em>A joint American and Canadian report co-authored by 福利姬自慰Scarborough Associate Professor Nick Mandrak finds that grass carp pose a significant threat to the Great Lakes. (Photo courtesy of the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee)</em></p> <p>Grass carp were first introduced to North America from Asia as bio-control agents in the 1960s. They were brought in specifically to control aquatic vegetation like weeds growing in aquaculture ponds mostly used by the channel catfish industry.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淯nfortunately, they escaped from those controlled environments into the wild&nbsp;either by floods&nbsp;or through being released on purpose,鈥 says Mandrak.&nbsp;</p> <p>Since then, they鈥檝e migrated up the Mississippi River into the Great Lakes region where they are reproducing in the Sandusky River. Grass carp&nbsp;have already been found in Lakes Michigan, Erie and Ontario. &nbsp;</p> <p>The concern is that since fish don鈥檛 obey borders, there鈥檚 nothing preventing them from entering Canadian waters. Once there, Mandrak says grass carps could severely decimate wetlands, which are important spawning habitats for native fish.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淲e need to be concerned because we share the Great Lakes, and the economic impacts would be significant&nbsp;especially when you look at commercial fishing and tourism,鈥 he says. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Mandrak points to one aquatic system in South Africa where 13 of the 14 aquatic species of vegetation were destroyed within two years of grass carp being introduced.&nbsp;</p> <p>He adds we鈥檙e at the point early in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CUiGYGPHFU">the invasion curve</a> where grass carp populations can be eradicated if rapid response is taken. If not, we could end up with scenarios from the past like sea lampreys and zebra mussels, two species that upended the ecology of the Great Lakes.</p> <p>鈥淭his study organizes a lot of the information we know about grass carp&nbsp;and the risk they pose to the Great Lakes,鈥 Mandrak says. 鈥淣ow we need to figure out what next steps can be taken to manage the problem.鈥&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Fri, 27 Jan 2017 20:10:56 +0000 ullahnor 103642 at