The bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) is a species of cyprinid freshwater fish native to East Asia, and is one of several Asian carps introduced into North America. It is one of the most intensively exploited fishes in fish farming, with an annual worldwide production of over three million tonnes in 2013, principally from China. Unlike the omnivorous common carp, bighead carp are primarily filter-feeding algae eaters, preferentially consuming zooplankton but also phytoplankton and detritus.
The bighead carp has a large, scaleless head, a large mouth, and eyes located very low on the head. Adults usually have a mottled silver-gray coloration. It is a large fish; a typical length is , and maximum observed size of and .
Bighead carp are native to large rivers and are associated with floodplain lakes of eastern Asia. Their range extends from southern China north to the Amur River system, which forms the border between China and Russia. They have been introduced widely outside their native range, including in the United States, where they are considered invasive as they out-compete native species (e.g. bigmouth buffalo). They are also found in the Nile in North Africa.
The bighead carp has a very fast growth rate, which makes it a lucrative and important aquaculture fish, having the fifth-highest production (7.5%) of all cultured freshwater fish worldwide. Its production grew from just 15,306 tonnes in 1950 to 3,059,555 tonnes in 2013, most of the growth being in China.
The value of bighead carp as a food fish has caused it to be exported from its native China to more than 70 other countries, where it has invariably escaped or been intentionally released to the wild. Today, the bighead carp can be found in the wild in Europe, South America and North America. It also has been introduced into most of the Indian subcontinent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh) and most Southeast Asian countries, as well as to lakes in western China where it is not native.