Posts tagged: zebra mussel

Bacteria Discovery Could Help Control Zebra/Quagga Mussel Populations

December 1, 2008, by 2 comments

Bacteria aren’t smart or good looking (except maybe to other bacteria), but to the Underground, they’re starting to look better – especially once you consider their potential to control Zebra Mussel populations.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Researchers seeking to slow the spread of invasive zebra and quagga
mussels in American lakes and rivers have found a bacterium that
appears to be fatal to the problematic species without affecting native
mussels or freshwater fish.

The bacterium, Pseudomonas fluorescens,
offers some hope for controlling the troublesome bivalves that are
wreaking ecological and economic havoc in North American waters from
the Colorado River to Vermont, and especially in the Great Lakes.

But
more testing remains to be done, and the bacteria could be used
effectively only on a limited scale, said Daniel Molloy, the New York
State Museum researcher who discovered the possible new use for P. fluorescens.

OK, phrases like “limited scale” and “more testing” temper our enthusiasm a bit, but we’ll take anything that interrupts the wave of bad invasive species news.

See you (and the other bacteria) on the river, Tom Chandler.

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Zebra/Quagga Mussel Inspections Instituted at Crowley Lake: The Same for Float Tubers?

April 8, 2008, by 2 comments

Via the Aquafornia blog:

To help prevent the spread of invasive mussels that can impact the fishery and damage water conveyance systems, all boats entering Crowley Lake this year will be thoroughly inspected, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) recently announced. Boats showing signs of contamination with invasive mussels, or found to contain any water or debris that could harbor mussels, will not be allowed to launch into Crowley Lake.

Boats will be inspected and boaters asked to fill out a survey form (which will take upwards of an hour). Re-inspections performed if a boat is trailered outside the "safe" area.

So the Underground wonders; where does that leave float tubes at the frequently floated Crowley? After all, Crowley’s the site of a serious float tube tournament.

Will fly fishers be required to offer up their float tubes for inspections?

The LADWP site doesn’t say, though it seems likely (to met) that float tubes could also transport the zebra/quagga mussel. See you at the inspection station, Tom Chandler.