There has been a lot of hubbub about the invasive Asian carp in the news lately. Even I've covered some of if here. As this problem continues to shake out in the rivers and lakes of the Great Lakes region, I'm sure we will all watch with interest. Will the Asian carp establish a viable breeding population in the Great Lakes? Will that population have a huge effect on the already struggling ecology of the region? What steps should we take to protect the resources that we hold so dear?
This article from the Detroit Free Press brings is the answers to some of these questions. The article examines some of the questions now being asked by biologists and other Great Lakes scientists about what we might expect if and when Asian carp establish themselves in the lakes. One of the most interesting things discussed in the article is the probability that Asian carp will start eating some algae that have been causing problems in the Great lakes.
A researcher familiar with the Asian carp Je He, says that they will likely eat a both green algae and blue-green algae. If the idea of blue-green algae is sounding familiar it's because it has gotten a lot of press in the last years for having a certain toxicity that can effect humans. If Asian carp are eating these algaes they may actual have some positive effects, although the net effect is still likely to be negative.
Je He also offered another insight into Asian carp in the Great Lakes, they may not be able to reproduce as prolifically. The Asian carp that have been studied to date require some fairly specific requirements for spawning. These requirments are typically met in a river environment, and may not be as easily met in the open water of the Great Lakes.
Of course, this is currently all speculation, and scientists are forever failing to predict exactly how the environment will react to specific stressors. All we can say right now is that they will have some impact, and hopefully our actions and the resilience of the Great Lakes ecosystem can cope with those impacts.
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