Native freshwater species get out of the way: Prussian carp (Carassius gibelio) impacts both fish and benthic invertebrate communities in North America

Prussian Carp (Carassius gibelio) are one of the most noxious non-native species in Eurasia. Recently, Prussian Carp, a non-native freshwater fish species, were genetically confirmed in Alberta, Canada and have been rapidly expanding their range in North America since establishment. Given their rapid range expansion, there is an increasing need to determine how Prussian Carp may impact native species. We assessed the severity of the Prussian Carp invasion by 1) determining their impact on fish communities, 2) assessing their impact on benthic invertebrate communities, 3) evaluating if Prussian Carp alter abiotic conditions, and 4) identifying where we find higher abundances of Prussian Carp. When Prussian Carp were established, we found significant changes to the fish community. Correspondingly, the degree of impact to benthic invertebrate communities was related to the stage of invasion (none, early, or recent), where changes in fish communities were significantly concordant with chang...