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Carp Food & Nutrition Detection:
How Carp Understand Which Foods to Eat
Carp are notorious feeders. Often called the "Pigs of a pond", carp seem to
exhibit a natural ability to discern which foods are healthy and which are
not. European carp, also referred to scientifically as Cyprinus carpio, were
spread through Europe between the 13th and 16th centuries from travelling
monks. Today, carp can be found in over 59 countries spanning all seven
continents. They have a wondrous ability to be able to survive, in fact to
thrive, in almost any environment. Even in ponds, lakes and rivers where the
food supplies are in constant flux, carp rarely go hungry.
While many people hypothesize that there is something magical about the carp
that allows them to determine which foods to eat, it is not so. Carp are
simply omnivorous opportunists. That means that they are happy to scavenge
for a variety of both plants and animals to derive the nutrients that they
need. Still, carp are very intelligent creatures with very
well-developed
senses. And those senses allow them to find their foods - and satiate their
ravenous appetites. Let's examine each of their senses in more detail to
determine just how a carp chooses its meal.
How Carp Choose Their Nutrition From Food
 They use their sense of smell:
Carp nostrils are called "nares" and are located right in front of each
of their eyes. Each nostril is covered by flap of skin. When it is raised,
water is able to channel through a complex set of tiny hairs. There are
thousands of these hairs and they have the ability to determine what is
sweet, what is salty, what is savoury and what is sour.
These extremely perceptive hair cells create a sense of smell that is far
superior to that of any human. Carp are able to detect very minute levels of
chemicals, including specific amino acid chains, in crustaceans,
bloodworm and more - even when they are buried beneath the silt. The carp
uses its snout-like nose to stir the water up and dislodge its prey.
Smelling is a long distance detection method for food location utilized by
carp.
They use their sense of taste:
As a carp approaches a given food source, its highly-sensitive taste buds
take the lead. That's right, carp have taste buds too. Having only its mouth
to gather food with, carps are also notorious for sucking in just about
anything to give it a try.
You'll also witness carp frequently rejecting certain food types when they
find it to taste badly. And these taste buds are located in more places than
just in their mouths. External taste buds are also positioned on their
pectoral fins, pelvic fins, barbules and on the bottom sides of their heads.
Food sources are located with pinpoint accuracy by using these various taste
buds after the sense of smell is used to detect the general area.
Additionally, experts estimate that the carp spits out about 97% of what
it takes into its mouth for testing. And sometimes, it will spit the
food out to clean it and then suck it back in to eat it.
They use their sense of sight:
Carp vision, like its other senses, is very well-developed. In addition to
being able to see in very low light, carp are also able to see a very
impressive spectrum of different colour hues. Its eyes are positioned on
either side of its head yielding excellent peripheral vision. In fact, your
average carp has almost a 360° range of vision. (Of course, its tail blocks
the final degrees.) And, in the waters above them for 97.6° (roughly 48.8°
to either side of the centres of their bodies), they do have a full 360°
vision field. Even very small changes in light refraction or motion are
quickly detected by the carp.
They use their sense of hearing:
Although you cannot see a carp's ears, they are there - inside of its body
to each side of its head. Located right above the gills, a carp's ears sit
just behind its brain. They are not ears in a typical sense though; they are
sacs that are filled with fluid and tiny hairs that are capable of detecting
even the tiniest vibrations in or on the water.
This time, the hairs are positioned on the eolith, or ear bone.
Additionally, its ears are connected to its swim bladder by a set of special
bones that amplify all sounds. Once again highly sensitive, a carp's sense
of hearing is able to detect frequencies ranging from 60 to 6000 Hz.
And they use their lateral lines:
All fish have two lateral lines that travel down each side of their bodies.
The carp is no different. These lateral lines are fluid filled canals that
feature very small openings. Sensory cells (cupula) exist within these
canals and resemble jelly with protruding hairs. The cupula detect
vibrations, changes in pressure and the direction of the water's flow.
With all of these highly advanced senses, it's no wonder that a carp is able
to determine where food sources lie hidden. Carp eat a variety of foods at
all levels of the water that they inhabit. They are more versatile and
dynamic than most other fish and therefore continue to thrive where others
cannot.
Applying a New Carp Bait
Fishing for Carp in Rivers
Locating
Big Carp in the Spring
Carp
Location in the Summertime
Finding
Large Carp in the Cold Winter
Location
of Most Carp in Autumn
The
Case for Quality Carp Bait
Fishing Tactics for Snags & Trees
Boilie Placement on the Hair rig
Different types of carp rigs to use
Attempting to Catch Wary Carp
A Carp's Digestive System in Detail
Common
Baiting Tactics When Fishing
The Various Carp Bait
used to Catch Bigger Carp
When to use Pop-ups or Bottom Bait for Carp Fishing
How to
complete a Baiting
Campaign on Lakes & Ponds
The
Basic Carp Fishing
Baits Used to Catch Large Carp
Fishing Tactics when Fishing for Carp during Long-stay Sessions
Advice & Articles on How to Fish for Big Carp
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