FISHING is about perceptions.

A trophy fish in some countries may be a noxious pest in another.

This is the way with carp: European coarse anglers love them; most Australian anglers regard them as vermin.

I was reminded of this on a recent visit to a fly-fishing shop.

After a few minutes of chat about the local trout population and what flies they were taking, the salesman cast a wider loop, asking, "when are the fisheries people going to do something about 'the carp problem'?"

'A virus available in Australia could be released into our waters to eradicate carp," he said.

"What about native fish or trout?" I asked.

"Won't hurt them. Studies have already been done and this virus only attacks carp."

The tackle salesman's attitude to carp reflects a widely accepted position among freshwater anglers who fish for everything other than carp.

The public's image of carp is of a noxious pest; an underwater rabbit that is a prolific breeder and amazing survivor.

There is no doubt that carp damage our waterways and make life difficult for more revered fish, including other imports such as trout.

The virus the salesman was referring to is spring viraemia, which has proven deadly on carp in Europe.

I am not sure about the protocols of releasing a new virus but we continue to pay for past mistakes for flora and fauna, and this includes the importation of carp.

In Lakes Sorrell and Crescent in Tasmania, Inland Fisheries Service has spent more than $4 million to eradicate the carp population and halt their spread to other waters.

This began in 1995 and today, while the lakes are all but carp free, no one says they are totally carp free and waters are still monitored.

The difference between Tasmania and southeast Australia is enormous. Tasmania's carp population was confined to two lakes and a few farm dams, with a carp population that was in the thousands.

In southeast Australia, carp could top 200 million, and they have spread across thousands of kilometres of waterways.

In the days of early settlement, there was a prevailing environmental theme-park mentality among settlers.

This God-like need to improve on mother nature resulted in a host of alien birds, animals, fish and plants being imported.

Carp had a charmed existence.

In 1859, the Victorian Parliament introduced the colony's first fisheries' legislation, titled "Preservation of Fish in the Lakes and Rivers of Victoria", a key aim of which was to provide protection for introduced fish for two years after their release.

By 1895, the legislation had been strengthened. All non-indigenous fish, including carp, tench and goldfish, were protected for three years after stocking in a new water.

It wasn't until the 1960s that the carp's potential for habitat destruction emerged, after carp from Gippsland were allegedly used to stock farm dams near Mildura. The rest is history.

These fish have developed a following in Australia, although some anglers won't concede this.

When I talk to coarse anglers in Australia and the UK, their attitudes are interesting.

Australian anglers agree carp are a problem, but say they are a worthy fish and fun to catch.

In the UK, carp are classed as a coarse fish, a term that reputedly originated in England where the gentry classified salmon and trout as "game" fish and all others as "coarse".

Coarse anglers asked me why carp were not as highly regarded in Australia as in England.

As a fishing buddy, who happens to be a food writer, points out, perceptions on carp are a matter of geography. In Asia and Europe, carp rate more highly than in Australia.

"In the Czech Republic, carp is the traditional Christmas meal. Instead of turkey or roast meat, they have carp," he said.

"The Czechs buy a live carp, take it home and leave it in the bath for up to a week to cleanse the meat so it is ready to cook."

He couldn't explain where the family washed while the carp lived in the bathtub.