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Quagga or Zebra Mussels found in Powell.
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08-09-2007, 08:41 PM
It's happened! DANG IT!
Link [url "http://wildlife.utah.gov/news/07-08/invasive_mussels.php"]http://wildlife.utah.gov/news/07-08/invasive_mussels.php[/url] [signature]
08-09-2007, 08:45 PM
It was only a matter of time before it happened....
FF462 [signature]
08-09-2007, 08:49 PM
Thats the thing that sucks about it. It will only be a matter of time before it gets spread to other lakes in Utah. WASH YOUR BOATS![cool]
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08-09-2007, 09:27 PM
nice next the gorge and other utah and wyo water's can you say bye bye fisheries.
 day I hope thay make it mandatory to clean your boat's at the ramp's on all body's of water.ASH .......PEOPLE ARE TO LAZY TO TAKE IT UP ON THEM SELF'S TO DO IT SO WHAT CAN BE DONE?[signature] 
08-09-2007, 10:00 PM
As much publicity there is about this problem you would think that everybody knows. For memorial day this year, my very own cousin and his girlfriend went to Lake Mead. A few days after they returned they called and told me they were going to Powell and invited me and my family to come along in our boat with them. I asked him if he was planning on cleaning his boat off with a pressure washer before launching at Lake Powell. He asked "What for?" When I told him about the Zebra/Quagga mussells he sounded very surpised and told me he hadn't heard anything about it.
I also know that there are a lot of people who, when asked if their boat had been in Lake Mead in the last 30 days, while sitting at the paystation at Lake Powell would say "no", just to hurry up the process, not even considering the potential consequences of their actions. I know this is extreme, and would be expensive and intrusive and people would complain and all, but I think ALL boats should go thru a [black]mandatory[/black] decontamination process on site before being allowed to launch at Powell. Make it free if you have an annual pass (you've already paid thru the nose) or add a few bucks to the already ridiculous daily entrance fee...which I gladly pay by the way every time I go! Randy [signature]
I used to N.ot have E.nough T.ime O.ff to go fishing. Then I retired. Now I have less time than I had before. Sheesh.
08-09-2007, 11:46 PM
I completely agree. A mandatory wash at the ramps.
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08-10-2007, 03:09 AM
hell ill take my machine down put a little cloroxs init and power wash boats at 5 bucks apiece.if i can do a hundered a day ill make good money.
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08-10-2007, 03:49 AM
Thats a good idea rollin in the money [
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08-10-2007, 01:50 PM
Well that just blows goats! Stupid people! Someone needs beaten about the head and neck with the bloody end of their arms. Those stupid little creatures will soon infest the entire state! Some biologist/geneticist needs to come up with some kind of virus that will attack only those beasts, and then kill them all.
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08-10-2007, 05:13 PM
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Thats the thing that sucks about it. It will only be a matter of time before it gets spread to other lakes in Utah. WASH YOUR BOATS![cool][/reply] what makes anyone think that it's a matter of time before it spreads? Most likely, it's already all over. Testing hasn't been done on other places yet, which means Sand Hollow, Quail Creek, etc. may already have them! but, it doesn't stop there. Today it's the zebra and quagga mussels. What's it going to be tomorrow? What new species of wood boring insects will be brought across the ocean in wooden crates and pallets? what kind of exotic spider is being transported along with trees and plants into our greenhouses? What kind of exotic frogs are being purchased for aquariums only to be released into the drain ditch in the back yard? What new type of ant will be brought from South America in a ships ballest? This world is an ever shrinking place. It's just too easy for exotic species to move from one continent to another. It's a world...[signature]
08-12-2007, 11:52 PM
Doom and Gloom oh my we better head for the hills the end is here.....[unsure][
 ][crazy] Wake up and think!!!!!!!! NO waters that have this thing in has hurt any fish to date yes they plug things up, but hurt the fishing!!!!NO no place yet, in the great lakes it has helped the fishing ... So all you doom and gloomers sell, no give away your fishing poles and all your other things to me and quite fishing.... More then just Powell has them Sand does or will Quail Gunnlock and maybe Jordanelle just a few.... The thing that should have happen was the state of Utah should have stopped all boats at the state line and should have put in washers and made all boats get cleaned there and at Powell..... . [signature]
08-13-2007, 09:23 AM
All introduced species WILL have an impact on the environment they're introduced into... be it a little or a lot... and typically no one can know at the outset which one it will be within a given environment. I think ANYONE that thinks they KNOW exactly what the outcome will be when a species is introduced is naive.
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08-13-2007, 11:41 AM
[cool][#0000ff]You are TOTALLY WRONG on the issue of the zebra mussels not being harmful to fishing. They have not become widespread enough in Mead to cause the kind of problems they do in some of the great lakes. But, if you do your homework, and check out some articles and websites on the subject, you will find that these little beasts have totally changed many fisheries back there already.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]Why? Because they filter the water to get their food. They suck out all of the zooplankton, algae and other nutrients needed by fish. Shad and other bait fish feed almost exclusively on this same stuff. And, the fry of all species have to rely on small organisms for at least a part of their early lives. Where the zebra mussels have established large populations, whole year classes of some species have failed to survive past the fry stage.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]Doom and gloom? You bet. Nothing preys on the mussels but they destroy pumps and water systems. They also destroy fish populations at the most basic level...before the fish ever get big enough to be caught by anglers. Then, as the larger fish die or are caught out, that species disappears...forever.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]Anybody familiar with the great lakes quickly sees the difference the mussels have made. Waters that have historically been "soupy" (nutritious) are now crystal clear. They have no food left in them for fish fry or "filter feeders". When the shad, alewives and other forage species disappear from the area...because they can't make a living...then the salmon, walleye and bass go elsewhere too. [/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]There are already signs of the future. Salmon and trout runs are dying out, and tackle shops, motels and restaurants in the popular fishing areas are suffering...or going out of business. In places where anglers used to be able to take their kids to fill a boat with jumbo perch, there is nothing on the sonar and they return to the docks without a single fish.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]The zebra mussels are just getting started in Mead. There is nothing that can be done to eliminate them. They will explode over the next few years and when they do the threadfin shad will disappear. The mussels filter out a lot of water every day...leaving nothing for the shad. When the shad are gone, bye bye stripers and most other predators.[/#0000ff] [signature]
08-13-2007, 02:59 PM
Thanks TD. I was going to get into the fact that they filter out the same nutrients and plankton that bait fish and subsequently the preditorial fish we all like to catch depend on but I was too frustrated to do so after reading BassRods post.
Based on their track record in the Great Lakes the odds are high they will have a similar impact on any other body of water they're introduced into. Also based on their track record it's likely that once introduced there is no stopping them with our current technology. We may be able to mitigate the impact to a small degree with our current technology, but a future biologically engineered virus is probably the only hope of putting a dent in them. As far as the details of the impact they will have on Powell and other Utah waters, we shall all see won't we. [signature]
08-13-2007, 09:29 PM
I am still waite and see some of what you say is true but the reports I see from some are not as bad as others say it was going to be....
Yes they plug up pipes and a lot more, but hurt the fishing I haven't seen any reports that say they are.... I wish they could get reed of them and keep them out, but I will waite and see how bad before I jump of the golden gate bridge or get up set.... . [signature]
08-13-2007, 10:39 PM
[cool][#0000ff]You are right about having to wait to see the full impact of the infestation. It can be either better or worse in any given water.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]You are also right about the mussels not having an immediate effect on the fishing in some cases. There are places around the great lakes where the clearer water has resulted in more weed growth and overall better fishing...for the adult fish. But, the spawn survival rates are usually way down, because of the aforementioned decrease in zooplankton and nutrients. The long term effects will show up later...with fewer fish in the system.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]If you go to your favorite search engine and plug in anything about zebra mussels or quagga mussels you will get hundreds of pages of website links to studies, reports and articles on the subjects. Many of those are done by individual states and universities, in states where there are already infestations or they are just worried about them. [/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]ALMOST UNIVERSALLY the reports are for adverse affects on fisheries. This is not just heresay from some folks who wish it wasn't true.[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]You suggested that it was Utah's fault for not putting a border checkpoint, and turning back all out of state boats...or requiring them to pass inspection...or whatever. Hey, we can't even keep out terrorists or illegal immigrants. How are we going to keep out those little critters that we can't even see when they are hidden on boats or other watercraft?[/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]I can assure everyone that Utah DWR has been in a blind panic about the quagga mussels, even before they were officially discovered in Lake Mead. And, once they were discovered, all possible avenues have been discussed for preventing their spread into other waters. But...two things have doomed their efforts. One...no money for a program. Two...boaters just do not get the picture. They either don't know or don't care about cleaning their boats and stopping the spread of those mussels. [/#0000ff] [#0000ff][/#0000ff] [#0000ff]WHO ME? NO WAY! I don' got no steenking mussels. Now lemme launch my big boat so I can drink more beer and burn more gas. [/#0000ff] [signature]
08-13-2007, 11:56 PM
[left][font "Comic Sans MS"][black][size 3]If you're headed to Powell, here's some good info to check out. Also when you leave, run your boat thru the decontamination station to avoid further infestation of our waters.[/size][/black][/font][/left] [left] [/left] [center][/center] [center][/center] [center][font "Franklin Gothic Medium Cond"][black][size 6][url "http://www.nps.gov/glca/parknews/zebramussel1.htm"]Glen Canyon Zebra Mussel Advisory[/url][/size][/black][/font][/center] [center][/center] [center][url "http://www.nps.gov/glca/parknews/upload/Expanded%20Action%20Plan.pdf"][inline StopAquaticHH4Web_1.jpg][/url][/center] [center]Click on picture [/center] [center][/center][black][size 4] [center][url "http://www.nps.gov/glca/parknews/upload/Final%20Self%20Cert%20Packet%20May%2022.pdf"]Quagga and Zebra Mussel-Free Certification[/url][/center][/size][/black] [center][url "http://www.nps.gov/glca/parknews/upload/Final%20Self%20Cert%20Packet%20May%2022.pdf"][/url][/center]
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08-14-2007, 01:05 AM
After you are done and leaving is a good idea....
Now I just wish we could turn back the time or days and get reed of then all together, or go ahead and find a way to deal with them.... No matter what, time will tell good or bad... . [signature]
08-14-2007, 12:16 PM
TD, on the no predators for the mussels, this from wikipedia:
(Granted that everything on Wikipedia is to be taken with a grain of salt!) [[url "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zebra_mussel&action=edit§ion=5"]edit[/url]] Predators of Zebra Mussels There are a number of natural predators of zebra mussel. Zebra mussels have high nutritional value (Walz, 1979) and are consumed in large quantities by [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crayfish"]crayfish[/url], [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterfowl"]waterfowl[/url] and in smaller quantities by [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muskrat"]muskrats[/url]. The nutritional value changes seasonally, particularly in terms of protein and carbonate content. Crayfish could have a significant impact on the densities of 1 to 5 mm long zebra mussels. An adult crayfish consumes an average of nearly 105 zebra mussels every day, or in all about 6000 mussels in a season. Predation rates are significantly reduced at cooler water temperatures. Several species of fish consume zebra mussels. Of these, roach seems to have the most significant impact on mussel densities. In some Polish lakes the diet of the roach consists almost exclusively (~95%) of zebra mussels (Stanczykowska, 1977). Despite all this, it seems that fish do not limit the densities of zebra mussels in European lakes. Zebra mussels are filter feeders. When they are in the water, they open up their shells to let [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detritus"]detritus[/url] in. Zebra mussels are a great nuisance to many people. Since they have colonized the Great Lakes, they have covered undersides of docks, boats, and anchors. They have also spread into streams and rivers across the country. In some areas they completely cover the [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substrate_%28marine_biology%29"]substrate[/url], and even cover other freshwater mussels. They can also grow so close together that they block off pipelines, impacting water intake pipes used by cities for their water supply, or by hydroelectric companies for power generation. Zebra mussels and other non-native species are credited with the increased population and size of [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smallmouth_bass"]smallmouth bass[/url] in Lake Erie. [url "http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassmaster/news/story?page=tourn_03_north_open_NY_erie_preview"][3][/url] They also cleanse the waters of inland lakes, resulting in increased sunlight penetration and growth of native algae at greater depths. This can prove beneficial for fish. Full article here: [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra_mussel"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra_mussel[/url] The Quagga article: [url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quagga_mussel"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quagga_mussel[/url] I absolutely agree about us not knowing the full of effect these mussels will have on our waters. But lets all hope for the best huh? [signature]
08-14-2007, 12:54 PM
[font "Comic Sans MS"][black][size 3]I've also read that these mussels are so efficient at filtering the water that they become concentrated with all the toxins that the water contains. Any predators that feed on them also become contaminated with these high degree of toxins making these mussel predators unfit for human consumption in many cases.[/size][/black][/font]
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