Gilligan, D., 2007. Targeted carp control options for the Lower Lachlan Catchment. Pages 1–2, In: 'Uptake Update' V1(5), Invasive Animals CRC Newsletter, Canberra, ACT, Australia.

Summary

The lower Lachlan catchment provides a unique opportunity for implementing a carp control program in the Murray-Darling Basin. The density of carp in the Lachlan is the highest of any catchment in New South Wales. However, the Lachlan river is largely isolated from the remainder of the Murray-Darling Basin and only ever connects with the Murrumbidgee River during periods of exceptionally high flow. This means that that there is not continual immigration of carp in from other river systems, which in turn means that any control work done in the lower part of the catchment has a good chance of remaining effective for long periods of time.

A new partnership project involving NSW DPI, the Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, the Lachlan Catchment Management Authority and the Natural Heritage Trust will trial a variety of ways to reduce carp numbers in this catchment. The initial two years of the project will focus on benchmarking the status of the carp population and the aquatic ecosystem in the lower Lachlan catchment. Carp removal activities planned from year three onwards will include: exclusion of adult carp from hotspot locations, trapping of carp dispersing from hotspot locations, removal of migrating carp in riverine fishway traps, removal of carp from freshwater lakes using attractants/traps, commercial harvest from freshwater lakes, recreational harvest through community based carp fish-out competitions, the implementation of daughterless carp gene technology when/if it becomes available for field application, and any other control options that may become available. Once in place, these measures will provide a working demonstration of what can be done to control the numbers of this noxious pest fish.

A newsletter outlining the project can be found at: http://www.invasiveanimals.com/index.php?id=NSW%20Carp%20Demo%20site