Officials Confirm 1st Capture of Silver Carp on St. Croix

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) _ Minnesota officials have confirmed the first capture of an invasive silver carp on the St. Croix River.

The Department of Natural Resources says a commercial angler caught it near Prescott, Wisconsin, as part of a monitoring project, just upstream from where the St. Croix meets the Mississippi River.

DNR invasive fish coordinator Nick Frohnauer says it's disappointing but not unexpected. In 2014, two silver carp were found in the Mississippi just upstream from the confluence of the Mississippi and St. Croix.

The commercial angler also caught one bighead carp, another species of invasive Asian carp. Bighead carp were previously caught at the same location and further upstream on the St. Croix.

Frohnauer the captures don't indicate that the two species have established populations or are reproducing in the St. Croix.