Electric barrier, ongoing research fight off Asian carp in Iowa’s Okoboji chain

In August of 2011, while fisheries biologists were collecting data on the fish in Iowa’s Okoboji chain, they discovered two bighead carp that were between 14 and 16 inches in length.  The next spring a commercial fishing crew netted 82 bighead carp and 55 silver carp in that same area. These fish were able to fight their way up the Little Sioux River during high water events. The fear of Asian carp had become a reality, and people now knew they could breach the Little Sioux River and make it into the Okoboji chain of lakes.