Bighead Carp
The bighead carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis or Aristichthys nobilis (Richardson, 1845) is a freshwater fish, one of several Asian carps. It has a large, scaleless head, a large mouth, and eyes located very low on the head. Adults usually have a mottled silver-gray coloration. Adults can be quite large. Record sizes occasionally approach 143 lb (65 kg) and a total length of 145 cm (56 in); one this size was collected in Furnas Reservoir, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, in 2006, but most places in the Mississippi River basin, a fish over 40 lb (18 kg) is considered very large. Bighead carp are popular quarry for bowfishers; the bowfishing record, captured in the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois, in May 2008, is 92.5 lb (42 kg). Bighead carp are native to the large rivers and associated floodplain lakes of eastern Asia. Their range extends from southern China to the Amur River system, which forms the northern border of China and the southern border of Russia. The bighead carp has a tremendous growth rate, making it a lucrative aquaculture fish. Bighead carp, (unlike the common carp, with which Europeans and most North Americans are more familiar), are primarily filter feeders. They are preferentially consumers ofzooplankton but also consume phytoplankton and detritus.
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