Heather Calkins holds a brook silverside captured while electrofishing Lake Calumet during a Rapid Response event. - Photo Credit: Adam McDaniel

Preventing and monitoring the expansion of invasive species and minimizing their impacts continues to be a priority for the Fish & Wildlife Service. Asian carp is an invasive fish in Region 3 keeping everybody’s attention and a focus for the Service. During the second week of July, Columbia FWCO's Adam McDaniel and Clayton Ridenour made their way to Lake Calumet and the Cal-Sag Channel to collect water samples for eDNA analysis. The Environmental Protection Agency continues to be a great help in assisting us with each of these outings. Peggy Donnelly from EPA and Alexander Benziger with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provided assistance collecting water samples. That round marked the second of three consecutive sampling events at this site recently, all resulting in at least one positive eDNA "hit" for silver carp in Lake Calumet.

Successive positive hits in the Calumet area initiated a Rapid Response and Columbia FWCO headed back to assist with the event. Brett Witte, Heather Calkins and Adam McDaniel came equipped with the new Midwest Lake Electrofishing Systems control box and electrofishing boat. Columbia joined other FWS offices, USACE, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and commercial fisherman in an extensive effort to capture an Asian carp. Three days of electrofishing, trammel netting, trap netting and seining were used to evaluate the presence of Asian carp in Lake Calumet. The event went well, no injuries, cooperative weather and best of all NO Asian carp. It's always great to join forces with other agencies in an effort to protect our ecosystems.

Heather Calkins, Adam McDaniel and Clayton Ridenour