The river carpsucker (Carpiodes carpio) is a freshwater fish found in the eastern United States. This species has a slightly arched back and is somewhat stout and compressed. While the fins are usually opaque, in older fish they may be dark yellow. It is distributed along the Mississippi River basin from Pennsylvania to Montana. The river carpsucker, like other suckers, is a bottom feeder and obtains its nutrients from algae, microcrustaceans, and other various tiny planktonic plants and animals found in silty substrates. The river carpsucker typically lives about two to four years, but may survive for up to 10 years. It begins to reproduce typically in late spring, and the female usually releases more than 100,000 eggs; it reaches sexual maturity around two or three years old. After relea