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Asian Carp Die-off Explained By State Officials

April 28, 2017 | Staff Report

Officials from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources say they may have an explanation for the massive Asian carp die-off seen in area lakes and rivers.

Numerous cases of dead Asian carp were reported to state officials in both Kentucky and Tennessee. Dead carp have been turning up on shores and belly up in the Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers and subsequently Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley.

In a Facebook post yesterday, KDFWR released this statement:

It appears that young Asian Carp are succumbing to stressors brought on by insufficient fat storage to get the fish through the winter and spring months. Young but large carp are likely most vulnerable to starvation after a warm winter because the fishes’ metabolism was elevated above that of a normal, colder winter. Because of malnutrition, the fish eventually succumb to secondary stressors such as bacterial infections, which their immune systems would normally fight off. Thanks to our Fisheries biologists and partner the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service for their diligent investigation.

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