WINONA, Minn. — Editor's note: The video above first aired on KARE 11 on June 30, 2021.
The Minnesota DNR says 83 invasive carp were pulled from the Mississippi River near Winona in mid-February, just the latest event in an ongoing effort to control the population of the destructive and voracious fish.
Commercial crews working with the DNR on their carp control effort captured the fish — 82 silver carp and one bighead carp — while working Pool 5A on Feb. 13 and 14. DNR investigators, along with peers from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and examining the invasives and trying to determine their age, reproductive status and where they migrated from.
“As with previous captures, it is unlikely that these adult fish were the result of reproduction in Minnesota waters,” DNR Invasive Species Unit Supervisor Kelly Pennington said in a released statement. “The DNR and partner agencies will continue to use a range of aggressive prevention and management techniques, consistent with the recently updated Invasive Carp Action Plan.”
In recent years, invasive carp have been caught farther and farther upstream, increasing the urgency of the mission to control the population. The DNR responded by stepping up efforts to capture, tag and track the carp, which compete with native fish for food, disturb plant life on the river bottom and endanger boaters by leaping from the water multiple feet into the air.
The largest collective capture took place in November and December of 2023, when the DNR and its partners removed a total of 408 invasive carp from Pool 6 on the Mississippi River near Trempealeau, Wis. Invasive fish have been caught as far upstream as Pool 2 of the Mississippi River in the Twin Cities metro area (bighead, grass and silver), the King Power Plant on the St. Croix River by Oak Park Heights (bighead and silver), and just downstream of Granite Falls in the Minnesota River (bighead).
DNR officials remind residents that invasive carp captures in Minnesota should be reported immediately by calling 651-587-2781 or by emailing the agency. Those catching or finding an invasive carp are asked to take a photo and transport the carp to the nearest fisheries office or make arrangements for it to be picked up by a DNR official.
For more on how invasive carp got to Minnesota and the DNR's detection and removal effort, check out this webpage.
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