These lakes also held sport fish until a weaponless conqueror
from Asia showed up. "Ten to 15 years ago, these lakes had good
bluegill, bass and crappie fisheries," said Paul Rister, western
fisheries district biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish
and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR). "We sampled Fish Lake a while
back and we literally did not see any sport fish. What we saw
there were all bighead and silver carp. All of those lakes in
the Boatwright, Peal, Swan Lake and Ballard wildlife areas are
all over run with silver and bighead carp. They've taken over
these lakes and replaced important game species. The native fish
just don't have a chance with those bigheads and silvers in
there." The silver and bighead carp swim into these lakes each
time the Ohio River floods. Arkansas fish farmers imported these
fish from Asia to control algae in their fish rearing ponds.
These fish farms are on the floodplain of the Mississippi,
Arkansas and White Rivers. The Asian carp escaped those fish
farms during floods in