‘Knew it was something big.’ Angler reels in huge carp on Missouri river, officials say

A Missouri angler searching for catfish reeled in a massive fish he’d never heard of instead, officials say.

Jesse Hughes was fishing with friends on the Osage River last week when he got the bite of a lifetime.

It was a 112-pound black carp, an invasive fish species that can live up to 15 years, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation.

“We hooked into it and knew it was something big, but I originally thought it was a catfish,” Hughes said in a news release. “It was the first I’d heard of a black carp. I didn’t know anything about it, so this has been quite the learning experience.”

The Asian species eats mussels and snails, and most were introduced in U.S. commercial fisheries to control snail populations, officials say. Black carp use teeth in their throats, which appear similar to human molars, to crush shells.

Black carp can be found throughout the Mississippi River system. In 1994, about 30 escaped from a fish farm into the Osage River during a high-water event, officials say.

The fish is on the state’s prohibited species list, which bans import, export, transport, sales, purchase or live possession without approval.

“If anglers happen to catch black carp, or any invasive fish, while fishing in Missouri waters, it’s imperative to contact their local conservation agent,” MDC Fisheries Programs Specialist Andrew Branson said in a news release. “That way, our fisheries staff can be notified and monitor the spread of these destructive species.”

The U.S. Geological Survey is studying the black carp caught by Hughes.

“It’s a little disappointing, as I don’t think I’ll ever catch a fish that big again,” Hughes quipped in the news release. “But at least it’s one less invasive fish in Missouri waters.”

This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 6:22 PM.