Invasive Carp Found in Central Oregon Reservoir, Near Sutherlin

Published 04/23/26 at 8:55 p.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Sutherlin, Oregon) - Illegally introduced common carp have been confirmed in Cooper Creek Reservoir near Sutherlin - and it has biologists worried. (Photo ODFW)

ODFW biologists verified an angler’s report last week after electrofishing crews located and removed 14 adult carp from the reservoir. Most were pregnant females estimated to be between two and eight years old.

The discovery has raised concerns among district staff and around ODFW.

Carp, native to Europe and Asia, can spread into calm reaches of the North and mainstem Umpqua rivers where they are capable of rapid population growth. A single adult female can produce up to 300,000 eggs in one spawn, and warm water can trigger multiple spawning events. The species is also known to degrade habitat for native fish by uprooting vegetation, increasing turbidity, and altering aquatic plant communities and food webs.

Umpqua Fish District Biologist Evan Leonetti said ODFW will continue electrofishing efforts at Cooper Creek and will dispose of any carp removed. He has notified the Sutherlin Water District, which manages the reservoir, and is coordinating with additional partners to determine next steps.

Leonetti is asking anglers who catch a carp to report the location, size, and, if possible, provide a photo. Reports can be sent to him at evan.leonetti@odfw.oregon.gov or call 541-440-3353. He encourages people not to put live carp back in the water. Because carp are non-game fish in Oregon, there is no harvest limit, and it is legal to dispose of the fish.

Photo: Sam Stukel /USFWS, Public Domain

There are reportedly some numbers along the Oregon coast or nearby, but it has not been well documented which bodies of water.

According to Oregon State University, they are one of the world’s most successful global travelers, but the story they conquered Oregon’s waterways begins over 100 years ago. They first arrived through the actions of a local riverboat captain. Heestablished a hatchery in Troutdale after purchasing the fish following the San Francisco World’s Fair. However, a catastrophic flood on the Columbia River soon intervened, sweeping the carp from their hatchery ponds and into the wild.

Unlike many other species, common carp can survive in oxygen-poor environments through "air gulping," a process where the fish rise to the surface to suck in oxygen directly from the atmosphere.

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