TAYLORSVILLE, Ky. — The DNA of two invasive fish species were found in a lake just an hour away from Louisville, Kentucky.
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KYFW) partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to sample Taylorsville Lake in Taylorsville.
Using DNA (eDNA) surveillance, scientists found DNA from both the invasive bighead carp and silver carp.
Over two days in October, USFWS collected and analyzed hundreds of eDNA samples from three sites at Taylorsville Lake. Of the 330 water samples collected from the lake, six tested positive for invasive carp genetic material.
Though invasive carp DNA was detected in Taylorsville Lake, the physical presence of the fish itself is not confirmed.
“A positive eDNA sample does not necessarily indicate the presence of live fish,” said Dave Dreves, director of the Fisheries Division at Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “It is possible for genetic material to be introduced into the water by boats or fishing equipment used in another area where invasive carp are present, or even by other animals such as fish-eating birds.”
Invasive carp are detrimental to native species in Kentucky, according to KYFW. They can out-compete native species for resources and some females can produce over 1 million eggs annually, causing their numbers to grow at an alarming rate. Also, silver carp can potentially cause injury to boaters due to the jumping behavior they exhibit when startled.
Kentucky Fish and Wildlife has been working to detect invasive carp in new areas of the Ohio River Basin since 2015.
Since 2013, commercial fishers have removed more than 60 million pounds of invasive carp from Kentucky waters.
It is illegal to move live invasive carp species in Kentucky. For more information on how to identify and report invasive carp, visit the KYFW website here.
