Common Carp
Scientific Name Cyprinus carpio carpio
Size 120 cm SL (male/unsexed); max. published weight: 37.3 kg; max. reported age: 20 years
Biology Occur at a temperature range of 3-35°C. Hardy and tolerant of a wide variety of conditions but generally favor large water bodies with slow flowing or standing water and soft bottom sediments. Common carp thrive in large turbid rivers. They are omnivorous, feeding mainly on aquatic insects, crustaceans, annelids, mollusks, weed and tree seeds, wild rice, aquatic plants and algae; mainly by grubbing in sediments. Spawn in spring and summer, laying sticky eggs in shallow vegetation. A female 47 cm in length produces about 300,000 eggs. Adults uproot and destroy aquatic vegetation.