Grass carp do not eat all aquatic plants equally. They usually prefer soft, submerged plants first. Tough emergent plants, floating-leaf plants, and algae are much less reliable targets.

Highly Preferred Plants

• Hydrilla – one of the best grass carp targets.
• Southern naiad – tender and usually eaten readily.
• Pondweeds – many Potamogeton species are readily consumed.
• Elodea / anacharis – often highly preferred.
• Brazilian elodea / Egeria – usually a strong target species.
• Coontail – commonly eaten, though results can vary.
• Chara – often grazed, especially when young and tender.
• Nitella – similar to chara and often eaten.

Moderately Preferred or Variable Plants

• Eurasian watermilfoil – often eaten, but results vary.
• Bladderwort – may be consumed if abundant.
• Water stargrass – variable control.
• Cabomba / fanwort – sometimes eaten, but not always fully controlled.
• Curly-leaf pondweed – more likely to be eaten when young and actively growing.
• Sago pondweed – may be eaten, often as a secondary choice.
• Illinois pondweed – usually eaten after more preferred plants decline.
• Duckweed – results are inconsistent.
• Watermeal – results are inconsistent.

Poor Grass Carp Targets

• Filamentous algae – unreliable; grass carp are not dependable algae control.
• Cattails – usually too tough and fibrous.
• Bulrush – generally not preferred.
• Arrowhead – emergent growth is seldom controlled.
• Water lilies – mature plants are usually not controlled well.
• American lotus – mature plants are rarely affected.
• Watershield – waxy leaves make it a poor target.
• Spatterdock – rarely eaten enough for control.
• Pickerelweed – usually ignored.
• Smartweed – limited grazing.
• Water primrose – often left untouched.
• Rushes and sedges – fibrous and generally unpalatable.

Important Limitations

• Grass carp usually prefer young, tender growth over mature, fibrous plants.
• They are most effective on soft, submerged vegetation.
• They are not reliable for cattails, lilies, lotus, filamentous algae, or most shoreline plants.
• Duckweed and watermeal control can be very inconsistent.
• As preferred plants disappear, grass carp may begin eating less-preferred plants.