This post is a bit late in coming but was spawned by Anthony's recent "carp" thread.
I tried to find a photo identification chart that shows the difference between the male and the female carp but could not find one.
Years ago, I fished carp on a pretty regular basis. During that time there was a not-so-sucessful European gentleman that would, from time to time, ask if he could have one of the fish I caught. I released everything but he wanted one for the table. Not knowing, I asked if they were good eating. He said they were very good. I gave him my next fish but he refused it saying he wanted only the female carp. The males were more red meat and not as good as the white meat of the females. Eventually I caught one he wanted. (I learned afterwards that he was talking about the texture, not colour, of the meat when he said red and white. The red meat of the male being more grainy than the smooth white meat of the female.)
I asked him how he could tell the difference between the male and the female. He showed me the anal area, where, this is where it gets unclear, there was a much sharper contour behind the female's anal fin than there was on the male. At least that's how I remember it.
My point is that there is a way to tell. I have met and fish with many Europeans since then and most agree the female is the better eating of the two. I tried to google "carp I.D." and related things to get a picture but with no luck.
If you are planning on keeping a carp for the table it might be worth checking out. Maybe somebody here can spread some light on the subject.


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Cheers
Bob