Includes species listed as injurious wildlife under the Federal Lacey Act (18 USC 42), which makes it illegal to import injurious wildlife into the United States or transport between the listed jurisdictions in the shipment clause (the continental United States, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any possession of the United States) without a permit. can lead to problems with all aquatic life as mussels consume it faster than it can be replaced. In addition to the ecological impact, Zebra Mussels have also had a significant economic impact as they attach themselves to water intake pipes and become a real problem for industrial and municipal water plants. Zebra mussels can compete with native species for food and habitat, cut the feet of swimmers, reduce the performance of boat motors, and cause expensive damage to water intake pipes. When Zebra Mussels invade a waterway, they cover every available hard surface and can consume practically everything in sight. The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) are small, freshwater, bivalve shellfish that were likely brought to the U.S. as stowaways in the ballast water of ships. The most effective way to kill aquatic invasive species (AIS), including zebra mussels, is the use of extremely hot water. Home Zebra and Quagga mussels . The Invasive Mussel Collaborative announced today that it has released a new strategy to reduce invasive mussels and their negative impacts. Alberta Invasive Species Council (Canada). See also: Scientific review and assessment (PDF | 106 KB). Zebra mussels can cause tremendous environmental and economic damage - hurting aquatic life, damaging your boat, hindering water … There is no need to use soap or chemicals. An injurious wildlife listing would not prohibit intrastate transport or possession of that species within a State where those activities are not prohibited by the State. The Western Regional Panel prepared Quagga and Zebra Mussel Action Plan 2.0 to inform ongoing management and partnership efforts intended to minimize the spread and impacts from zebra and quagga mussels in the western United States. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. Their name comes from the dark, zig-zagged stripes on each shell.Zebra mussels probably arrived in the Great Lakes in the 1980s via ballast water that was discharged by large ships from Europe. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Zebra Mussel. The activity below asks you to graph the population growth of Zebra Mussels in the Mississippi River Watershed in an effort to characterize the growth as exponential or linear. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. The Invasive Mussel Collaborative was formed in 2014 to advance scientifically sound technology for invasive mussel control to produce measurable ecological and economic benefits in the Great Lakes. These recommendations are intended to inform decision-making to provide increased capacity and clear direction that empowers the further implementation of a collaborative and coordinated multi-jurisdictional regional strategy to prevent the spread of quagga and zebra mussels in the West. Since the discovery of these aquatic invaders, the biggest worry in Pennsylvania was that Zebra Mussels would find their way into the Susquehanna River and from there ultimately invade the Chesapeake Bay. Pennsylvania Sea Grant. Adirondack Watershed Institute. Before moving your boat to another lake, call TPWD at (512) 389-4848 for guidance on decontamination. Both zebra and quagga mussels are light with dark brown markings; zebra mussels have a … One recommendation in Safeguarding the West was the development of a reference manual to facilitate rapid response activities in the event of mussel introductions in the Columbia River Basin. The https:// means all transmitted data is encrypted — in other words, any information or browsing history that you provide is transmitted securely. Center for Environmental Research and Conservation. Conservation initiatives that work at a landscape scale to address natural resource concerns, including invasive species; 3. Virginia Cooperative Extension. Great Lakes Commission; Invasive Mussel Collaborative. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has estimated that Zebra Mussels caused more than five billion dollars worth of damage from 1993 to 1999. Each mussel can filter a quart of water a This would make an ecologist worried because Zebra mussels are an invasive species that can completely disrupt an … The .gov means it’s official.Federal government websites always use a .gov or .mil domain. Not only do they consume a great deal of the food supply in the lake, but they also attack native mussel species by sticking to them and robbing them of fresh water and food. Click on the map to see a year by year expansion of Zebra Mussel Populations. The Pennsylvania Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan defines AIS as aquatic organisms (plants, animals, and pathogens) that are not native to the aquatic ecosystem under consideration and whose ... Zebra mussels can cut the feet of swimmers and encrust historic shipwrecks. Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), from the United States Geological Survey (image in the Public domain, Creative Commons) Center for Invasive Species Research. Washington Invasive Species Council. Another invasive species in Lake Michigan that's creating unusual impacts and causing irreversible damage is mussels. Competes with native species; clogs pipes (. Provides detailed collection information as well as animated map. One of the region’s most prolific invaders from the past several decades is the zebra mussel. Waters (Sep 2020) (PDF | 3.93 MB), Safeguarding the West from Invasive Species, Actions to Strengthen Federal, State, and Tribal Coordination to Address Invasive Mussels (PDF | 1.3 MB), Dreissenid Mussel Rapid Response in the Columbia River Basin: Recommended Practices to Facilitate Endangered Species Act Section 7 Compliance (PDF | 3.63 MB), Invasive Mussel Collaborative Releases New Strategy to Reduce Invasive Mussels and Their Negative Impacts (Nov 29, 2018), Strategy to Advance Management of Invasive Zebra and Quagga Mussels, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: Point Map - Zebra Mussel, Injurious Wildlife: A Summary of the Injurious Provisions of the Lacey Act (Dec 2017; PDF | 401 KB), Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database - Zebra Mussel Images, Fact Sheet: Zebra Mussel | Quagga Mussel (Jan 2014) (PDF | 500 KB), Priority Species: Zebra and Quagga Mussels, Species of Concern Fact Sheet: Zebra and Quagga Mussels, NOBANIS: Invasive Alien Species Fact Sheet -, Invaders Factsheet: Zebra and Quagga Mussel, Non-native Species Information: Zebra Mussel, The Quiet Invasion: A Guide to Invasive Species of the Galveston Bay Area - Zebra Mussel; Quagga Mussel, National Exotic Marine and Estuarine Species Information System (NEMESIS) -, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database: Fact Sheet - Zebra Mussel, Environmental Fact Sheet: Zebra Mussels (2019) (PDF | 673 KB), Preventing Freshwater Aquatic Invasive Species: Zebra Mussel (Jan 2013) (PDF | 978 KB), Aquatic Invasive Species: Zebra Mussel (Dec 2005) (PDF | 297 KB), Aquatic Nuisance Species List - Zebra Mussels, Invasive Species Information: Zebra Mussel, Maryland Invasive and Exotic Species - Zebra Mussels, Scientific review and assessment (PDF | 106 KB), Aquatic Invasive Species in the Chesapeake Bay - Zebra Mussels (Sep 2013) (PDF | 127 KB), Factsheet: Zebra Mussel and Quagga Mussel, Introduced Species Summary Project - Zebra Mussel, Invasive Species Information: Zebra/Quagga Mussel, Zebra Mussels Pose a Threat to Virginia's Waters. The zebra mussel and its colleague the quagga mussel, which prefers slightly deeper water, are here to stay – our ecosystem has been fundamentally transformed and there is no going back to pre-invasive conditions. Smithsonian Institution. Filtering the water may sound like a good thing, but the problem with zebra mussels is they are too effective at what they do. The Round Goby is a small fish that eats zebra mussels. If you have stored your boat in the water at a lake with zebra mussels, it is likely infested with zebra mussels and poses an extremely high risk for moving this invasive species to a new lake. Since their discovery in Lake St. Clair (A small lake between Lake Huron and Lake Erie) in the mid 1980s they spread quickly to all of the Great Lakes, and many other waterways including the Hudson River in … YouTube; Texas Parks and Wildlife. In November of 2009, this worry became a reality, as mussels were confirmed at the Conowingo Dam, which is on the Susquehanna River along the PA/Maryland border. They will first invade a lake or other body of slow moving water, then as their numbers increase they will spill out into rivers below the lake and “carpet the bottom for several hundred yards”. Zebra Mussels actively filtering. Zebra mussels are an invasive, fingernail-sized mollusk that is native to fresh waters in Eurasia. Eight federal government agencies have signed a memorandum of understanding to guide their response to invasive zebra mussels and quagga mussels in 19 Western states, including Colorado. Media: zmqm2013_2013.pdf. Shipwrecks & Aquatic Invasive Species Zebra and quagga mussels have dramatically changed the ecology of the Great Lakes. Since the 1980s, the species has invaded the Great Lakes, Hudson River, and Lake Travis. To learn more about zebra mussels and other invasive species in Texas, visit the agency's "Stop Invasives" portal. For more resources, see: Key Documents. Management of these invaders is expensive; in the Great Lakes, managing mussels costs about $500 million annually. University of Georgia. Ontario's Invading Species Awareness Program (Canada). Areas of established Zebra Mussel populations in the United States as of 2010. Boaters are advised that if they have stored their boat in the water at a lake with zebra mussels, it is likely infested with zebra mussels and poses … The zebra mussel, a mollusk native to Eurasia, was first discovered in the Great Lakes of North America in 1988. They filter all of the plankton out of the water so the native species have nothing to eat. ZEBRA/QUAGGA MUSSEL (Dreissena polymorpha) (Dreissena bugensis) Zebra and quagga mussels are small fingernail-sized bivalves that occur in very dense colonies throughout the Great Lakes region. 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