Common Carp Length - Weight

Common Carp | Credit: USGS

Common carp, a species originally native to Asia and Eastern Europe, have been introduced to environments worldwide.

They are known for their adaptability and size variability, which can be influenced by factors such as habitat, diet, and age.

The common carp's ability to reach substantial sizes is one of the reasons it is prized by anglers and considered a challenging catch.

Typically, a common carp that measures 15 inches in length may weigh around 2 pounds. As they grow, the weight-to-length ratio increases. A 16-inch carp might average closer to 2.5 pounds. This incremental growth continues, with a 17-inch carp possibly weighing around 3 pounds, and an 18-inch carp around 3.5 pounds.

The pattern of growth tends to follow this trajectory, with each inch in length adding roughly half a pound to the carp's weight. By the time a carp reaches 24 inches, it could weigh approximately 6.5 pounds.

Moving towards the upper end of the scale, a 30-inch carp often tips the scales at about 10 pounds. As the carp grows larger, the weight gain per inch can become more variable.

A 35-inch carp might weigh in the region of 15 to 25 pounds, and a 40-inch carp could weigh 25-40 pounds or more, depending on the conditions it has lived in.

It's important to note that these figures are averages and individual weights can vary significantly. 

Notable Carp Catches - Length and Weight

While bowfishing in 2014, Adam Faatz of Hawthorne, NJ, broke the New Jersey state record for common carp with a 45 lb. 6 oz. specimen with a length of 42 inches.

On June 9, 2013, bowfisherman Patrick Johnson took a new Ohio state record carp in Lake Erie. The massive carp weighed 53.65 pounds and measured 45 inches in length.

In 2022, Ayden Minick caught and released a new West Virginia state record common carp caught from Summersville Lake. The record-setting carp weighed 45.2 pounds and was 41.2 inches long. 

In 2012, bowfisherman Zack Seitz reeled in a 59-pound common carp measuring 46 inches long, breaking the Wisconsin state alternate method record.

Related Information

Carp Fishing in North America

Tackle and Techniques for Catching Walleye

Walleye | Credit: USFWS

Catching walleye can be an exciting and rewarding experience. This post includes popular lures and techniques that are often used.

Jigs are among the simplest lures, consisting of a hook with a molded lead head. They can be fished vertically or cast and retrieved through any part of the water column.

Jigs can be tipped with live or dead minnows, worms, and leeches, or with soft plastic bodies and tails.

Crankbaits are another popular choice for walleye fishing. Typical crankbaits for catching walleye are around 4-3/4 inches in length and come in a variety of popular color patterns.

Spinners can also be effective for catching walleye.

Soft plastics can be used on their own or in combination with jigs.

Live bait rigs, such as worm harnesses, can be very effective for catching walleye.

Stick baits are another good option, especially for larger walleye.

In terms of techniques, walleye are known to be low light feeders and feed well at night but they also feed and bite during the day.

Anglers usually fish for walleye in less than 40 feet of water mainly because this is where most walleye live. Adult walleye primarily eat fish such as yellow perch, alewife, and ciscoes.

An understanding the behavior of the fish, using the right equipment, and being patient are key elements of successful walleye fishing.

Lake Mattamuskeet Carp Removal

Common Carp | credit: U.S. Army

A $1 million federal grant will go towards the removal of large numbers of common carp from Lake Mattamuskeet in North Carolina.

Located within Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge, the lake is also home to more popular freshwater fish including largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, sunfish, and striped bass.

Invasive carp, like those in Lake Mattamuskeet, compete with native fish for the natural resources and destroy the natural aquatic habitat.

Carp can degrade water quality by muddying the waters and uprooting aquatic plants. Their destruction also negatively impacts migratory wintering waterfowl that feed on the plants.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has partnered with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) to remove the carp.

Several years ago, barriers were installed at the lake's four tide gates to keep adult carp from entering the lake. Now, the ones still in the lake must go.

The Service awarded WSB the contract to clear approximately 1 million pounds of carp from Lake Mattamuskeet.

During a similar large-scale carp removal effort in the 1940s and 1950s, large haul seines, baited traps, and pound nets were used successfully.

Another approach, known as the modified unified method, utilizes large seines and herding methods to move carp into nets successfully. Once netted, carp are extracted from the lake. WSB will utilize a combination of these removal methods. 

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investment will improve the natural environment of the 40,000-acre Lake Mattamuskeet and four outlet canals, according to USFWS.

source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Vermont Northeast Kingdom Lake Trout

Lake Trout

Vermont's Northeast Kingdom region is known for its trophy class lake trout. In 2023, a 25.6 pound lake trout was landed from Echo Lake in Charleston.

Although Lake Champlain gets most of the attention for lake trout fishing in Vermont, many of the inland lakes in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom are real sleepers for big fish, according to Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department (VFWD) fisheries biologist Shawn Good, who administers the state’s Record Fish Program. 

"In fact, if you’re talking exclusively about trophy sized Lake Trout, the Northeast Kingdom is where you want to be," said VFWD fisheries biologist Jud Kratzer.  All 69 Lake Trout exceeding 20 pounds that have been entered in the Record Fish Program over the years have come from Kingdom waters.  And 530-acre Echo Lake has produced four of them, with the largest being just shy of 30 pounds. That’s remarkable for a lake of that size."

The Northeast Kingdom (NEK) includes over 2,000 square miles of Vermont and is home to some of the state’s most scenic locations.

Bordered by Canada and northern New Hampshire, the Kingdom is known for its fishing, outdoor recreation, and natural resources.

For more information on fishing in Vermont can be found on the Vermont Fish and Wildlife website (vtfishandwildlife.com).

Kansas State Record Redear Sunfish

Redear Sunfish Illustration | credit: USFWS

Great Bend resident, Jason Cavender was the last angler to set a Kansas state record for the 2023 fishing season.

Cavender landed a 1.725 pound redear sunfish while fishing at Cheyenne Bottoms Sportsman’s Club in Great Bend. 

The record-breaking sunfish measured a whopping 12 inches in girth and 12.125 inches long.

Cavender’s catch beats out the previous redear sunfish record set in 1995 by Larry Fox of Scott City. Fox caught a 1.69 pound redear from Finney Wildlife Area that measured 11.75 inches long.

The redear sunfish is the largest species of sunfish in North America. Also known as shellcracker and other nicknames, redears can attain weights of 5 pounds or more.

For more on fishing in Kansas, visit ksoutdoors.com

Lake Erie Fishing

Lake Trout

Lake Erie is one of North America's top freshwater fishing destinations. Anglers fish for an array of species in the main lake and its many tributaries.

Lake Erie Facts

Lake Erie sustains populations of yellow perch, walleye, lake trout, steelhead, brown trout, coho salmon, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill sunfish, musky, northern pike, and other species.

Lake Erie is the shallowest of the five Great Lakes. The lake is bordered by Ontario Canada and the American states of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Michigan.

With a surface area of 9,900 square miles and more than 850 miles of shoreline, the lake is a fishermen's paradise.

Wind and weather conditions on Lake Erie can create a seiche, an oscillating wave which can be several feet high. Seiches can cause water levels to fluctuate, especially around Buffalo, NY.

Yellow Perch

The yellow perch is Lake Erie's most popular panfish. Lake Erie anglers catch yellow perch with live baits as well as artificial lures. Peak fishing for yellow perch usually occurs during spring spawning runs. In the fall, anglers target yellow perch as the move down creeks and into Lake Erie. During the winter season, Lake Erie fishermen catch yellow perch by ice fishing.

Lake Trout

The lake trout is one of the most popular gamefish in Lake Erie. The largest member of the char family, lake trout can weigh 60 pounds or more.

Lake Erie Ice Fishing

Yellow Perch

Lake Erie is one of the most popular ice fishing destinations in the Northeast. The yellow perch is by far the most sought-after fish by Lake Erie ice fishermen.

Ice fishing enthusiasts also catch walleye, musky, pike, lake trout, crappie, bluegill, and other species.

The most basic form of ice fishing on Lake Erie consists of bottom fishing with small baits or slowly jigging small lures.

In addition to hand-held rods, some anglers fish unattended rigs, known as "tip-ups". These simple devices are designed to hook fish and provide the angler with some indication when a strike occurs.

Although simple fishing strategies remain popular on the lake, a number of complex ice fishing techniques have gained popularity in recent years. For electronics enthusiasts, there are fishfinder units (sonar), underwater video cameras, GPS devices, and other equipment.

Commercial Fisheries

In recent decades, the Lake Erie has sustained a variety of commercial fisheries in both Canadian and American waters. Walleye and yellow perch are typically the most important species for American fishermen. Important Canadian fisheries include walleye, yellow perch, white bass, smelt, and lake whitefish.