What to do about the zebra mussels in Millbrook?

[JCKCSYCMD]

Zebra mussels take flight...

As a Great Lakes diver, boater, and inland lake homeowner when the zebras hit it was a panic. Ban this, ban that, stop launching traveling bass boats...etc. But even secluded waters soon became infested...

Thanks to geese, duck and other traveling water fowl. It appears that the larva for zebra mussels can live for 7-9 days out of water. They will in fact infest every body of habitable water.

Actually now that we have had them for all these years, we are now cohabitating, although water inlets, etc, do need to be maintained. Also once perfect ship wrecks are now being attached to.

 

[TCDiver1]

JCKCSYCMD once bubbled...

Actually now that we have had them for all these years, we are now cohabitating, although water inlets, etc, do need to be maintained. Also once perfect ship wrecks are now being attached to.

As wreck divers, this is the worst part of the little blighters. They complete cover everything and anything solid. Which means wrecks get completely covered and become less distinguishable as wrecks or part of a wreck. That part really sucks, the better vis is great ... a bit of a catch-22.

A bigger threat to great lakes fisheries per the biologists i know is the introduction of gobie species into the great lakes via ballast tanks of ocean going vessels. They are thriving by eating native fish species eggs faster than they can be reproduced. Whitefish and lake trout have been hit particularly hard. I've certified several state biologists who are spending a significant amount of their time trying to counter the problem.

No answers in sight .... not good.

 

[tinman]

Stock your quarry with Bass. Bass have been seen in our inland lakes to inhale the entire zebra mussle and spit out the crushed shell. Where a potential food source is concerned, Nature will find a way....

 

[Seahunt100%]

Finally, I read the Dive Training magazine and it confused me and I hope that someone would be able to explain it to me.
The article about the zebra mussels in Millbrook on page 20 says:

“ the mussels have spread through the Great Lakes and major rivers, killing marine life, clogging drinking water intakes and costing billions of dollars to control.”

I have no problem with that, but in the same magazine and in the same issue on page 95 an article about Portage Quarry Recreation Club says:

“The lake supports a significant population of freshwater fish, including largemouth and smallmouth bass, bluegill, carp, northern pike, walleye, channel catfish and yellow bullhead. Crayfish, turtles and zebra mussels can also be spotted.
The proliferation of zebra mussels, which has seriously damaged some ecosystems, has thus far benefited Portage by improving the visibility.”

I feel that they have two faces, the first article stating that the mussels are too bad for the environment and for our daily life, but in the second one, they are bad for some ecosystems.
Could anyone explain it to me?

Even though zebra mussels may improve vis, the fact is they are implicated in causing major negative changes to the environment.
http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/nation/4310306.htm

This is in addition to the fact they cover every solid surface with their razor sharp shells. Wrecks in the Great Lakes are becoming unrecognizable due to thick encrustations of the buggers. They've also been known to crowd out native species, as well.

Here's the latest on the Millbrook situation:
http://www.bayjournal.com/04-04/briefs.htm

I was the one who happened to recognize them in 2002 in Millbrook. Initially I figured the state already knew about them, but was shocked at the frantic phone call I received from them 5 minutes after I posted a note on a web page that they were in Millbrook. They quickly dispatched a team to verify the Millbrook population. It was hard to believe it was the very first occurrence in VA. I visited there last year and couldn't believe how much they proliferated in one year! :11: Who knows what Millbrook will be like in a few years.

Every biologist I talked to were very concerned about the new finding. I'm surprised the state doesn't put more priority on funding for eradiaction.

Here's an interesting site showing the progression of the critters: http://cars.er.usgs.gov/Nonindigenous_Species/ZM_Progression/zm_progression.html

 

[Throwback]

as long as the quarry is not feeding some other body of water I don't thinnk that they are a problem. Also, regarding the argument about overcrowding wrecks, i have not noticed the Mussels deeper than 50 feet. I don't recall seeing them on the airplane or the Motorcycle, or even that little rowboat at the the deepest point.

 

[Throwback]

I forgot to ask. What part of the world does the Zebra Mussel come from?

 

[JCKCSYCMD]

as long as the quarry is not feeding some other body of water I don't thinnk that they are a problem. Also, regarding the argument about overcrowding wrecks, i have not noticed the Mussels deeper than 50 feet. I don't recall seeing them on the airplane or the Motorcycle, or even that little rowboat at the the deepest point.

Sad to report we are seeing them as deep as 80 feet in the Great Lakes on wrecks (Huron/Michigan/Erie). As far as the quarry not being a problem if not feeding some other body of water...not so. As a Great Lakes and inland waterfront property owner, I am not aware of any body of water around the Great Lakes, that is not infected. That includes lakes/ponds that are isolated with no boating access. In addition to water front property, I have two decorative ponds with a water fall, complete with zebra mussels. How did they get there?
Most likely the geese, ducks, and occasional blue heron that wander up from the water and across my yard and into the small ponds by the deck/patio. Reports indicate that the zebra mussel larva can live for 7-9 days out of water in the feathers of traveling water fowl. They will in fact infest every body of habitable water simply by the flight patterns of birds.

As far as the origination...Europe...ironically they are just common piece of nature there, and never really received much attention until hitting the US.

 

[Throwback]

If the problem is birds and not divers then, short of killiing the birds, it appears that there would not be anyway to keep the mussels out of any body of water for the long term.

 

[ddown]

With all the Geese at millbrook wouldn't surprise me if that's how they were introduced. Other than on the walls on the side by the winnebago I haven't noticed them expanding that fast. How is it around beach 1 on the boat wrecks or bus??

ddown

 

[Doc Intrepid]

I was at Millbrook last Sat (April 3) diving off Beach 1. I did not notice any serious encroachment on any feature you mentioned.

I must say, however, that the algae bloom was truly impressive. If its true that algae bloom correlates to rise in mussel population, then that may eventually become problematic. The vis, however, was something on the order of 50' or better...