Importation and interstate transport of live silver and largescale silver carp will be banned under a final rule published in the July 10 Federal Register by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. A petition to the Service signed by 25 Members of Congress outlined the impacts of silver carp to humans and native aquatic species in waters of the United States. The final rule – advanced under the injurious wildlife provisions of the Lacey Act – addresses these concerns and will become effective on August 9, 2007.

"Slowing the spread of these carp is necessary to protect our native aquatic species," said H. Dale Hall, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "Although silver carp are established in parts of the Mississippi watershed, we will work to keep their impacts minimized and prevent additional populations from taking hold."

Silver carp, native to Asia, were introduced in the United States in the early 1970s for use as algae control agents in sewage lagoons and fishery production ponds, but escaped into surrounding waters. The silver carp have established themselves in the Mississippi River Basin but are not currently cultured in the United States. Silver carp are difficult to handle and transport because of their tendency to jump: growing up to three feet long and 60 pounds in weight, silver carp have leaped into moving boats injuring people and damaging equipment.

Biologists are concerned that silver carp could spread throughout large rivers and lakes in the United States and compete with native species for food and habitat, having both ecological and economic impacts and threatening, for example, the multimillion-dollar Great Lakes fishery.

Largescale silver carp, native to parts of China and Vietnam, are a distinct species related to the silver carp and warrant prohibition as well. While not yet known to be in the United States, largescale silver carp could also directly compete with native aquatic species for food and habitat and may hybridize with silver and bighead carp, both of which are already in U.S. waters.

Documents are available at: http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/ANS/ANSSpecies.cfm

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 97-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 547 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.

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