There is a great debate going on about whether Asian carp should be considered a threat and what we should do about it. Grass carp, bighead carp, black carp and silver carp are all Asian carp species. According to Keith Lawrence of the Messenger-Inquirer, carp are processed into fertilizer and fish oil, as well as being sold in Asia as food. However, the New York Times says carp could easily end the $7 million fishing industry in the Great Lakes. Aside from the economic reasons for maintaining or eliminating them, the main reason for preventing their spread is the fact that they threaten to collapse the entire ecosystem if they get out of control. Asian carp are harmful as invasive species due to their adaptability, reproductive ability, appetite, and impact on native species. First and foremost, Asian carp are all very adaptable when it comes to the conditions in which they can survive. Carp are able to survive in frozen lakes as long as they can reach the surface; they are able to survive even in very hot climates. Carp are also able to eat a wide variety of foods so they can get nutrition from things that most fish can't eat. Asian carp have a great ability to hear sounds which makes them cautious fish. Carp weight ranges from 40 pounds to 100 pounds; this enormous size and weight means they have a small number of predators. Even though they are large fish, they are quite bony and their meat has very little market in America. When oxygen in the water is scarce, carp can gulp air from the surface of the water, which means they can live in both small bodies of water such as swamps and large ones such as lakes. With all this it seems that the CARPs are a... means of paper... an obstacle to Canadian immigration policy." CBS News. August 6, 2010. Lawrence, Keith. “Asian carp are currently a nuisance.” Messenger Inquirer. August 30, 2010. Lyndersen, Kari. “Carp invasion may lead to changes in waterways.” New York Times. October 17, 2010. Online. http://www.absolutemichigan.com/dig/michigan/michigan-invasive-species-asian-carp/. December 9, 2010. Online. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/aquaticanimals/asiancarp/index.html. December 8, 2010. Online. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/aquaticanimals/commoncarp/index.html. December 8, 2010. Online. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cyprinus carpio. December 8, 2010. Online. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/silver_carp. December 8, 2010. Online. http://www.epa.gov/greatlakes/invasive/asiancarp/. December 8, 2010. Online. http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek030301.html. December, 9, 2010.