Scientific Name: Cyprinus carpio carpio

Residency: Non-native to Arizona widely introduced throughout the world.

Habitat: This fish is able to tolerate a wide variety of conditions; most favorable is a large still or slow-moving body of water with a soft sediment bottom.

Diet: Consume a varied diet which includes crustaceans, insects, mollusks, annelids, various aquatic plants and algae, seeds, and wild rice. They often find their food by rooting around among sediments.

Breeding: Females lay eggs in shallow water among vegetation; as many as 300,000 eggs can be laid which can be fertilized by several males. Breeding occurs at temperatures between 15 and 20 degrees Celsius.

Status: Considered a threat to some native fish and duck populations where they have been introduced because they destroy aquatic vegetation.

Photo: To be added.

To return to species list, close or minimize this window.