When the native fish species manage to spawn, the eggs are often eaten by the carp. European Carp spawn in the spring or early summer. They produce large quantities of eggs. Some large females carp lay as many as two million eggs. They are attached to submerged plants throughout their habitat.
Young carp are an important source of food for larger fish like trout.
They are also eaten by water feeding birds like the great blue heron. European Carp have a life span of about 20 years. In Ontario, about five-hundred thousand kilograms of carp are harvested by commercial fisherman each year.