King carp have been bred in Europe for about the last 300 years. In countries where they were popular to eat, they were originally bred to grow faster and be more full bodied.

The Common carp is similar in appearance, but not in shape, to the wild carp. It has a fully-scaled body and a golden/silver colour. Generally the common carp has a sleeker body shape than its fellow mirror carp.

The common carp is a ferocious fighter and usually screams off, like no other fish, when hooked.

The current British record for a Common carp is over 60lb!.