Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

[frantically relaxing]

I was hoping this would never happen...

 

[roscoe]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Sorry for the bad news.

But what a poorly written article, IMO.

Well, now they can save that $1.6m on prevention, and spend it on eradication.

The zebras were first documented in the Great lakes in 1988, the quaggas in 1989. Not '87 as in the article.

 

[joed]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

They will never get rid of them. Once they are there they breed like crazy. That is bull crap about not being close enough to breed.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Water ought to be nice and clear now - if it wasn't before

 

[Slip Away]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Yep, nice clean water ahead for those that boat on Powell

 

[OllieC]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Sorry for the bad news.

But what a poorly written article, IMO.

Well, now they can save that $1.6m on prevention, and spend it on eradication.

The zebras were first documented in the Great lakes in 1988, the quaggas in 1989. Not '87 as in the article.

Agreed about the poorly written part. The mussels also can be transported lake to lake or lake to stream via waterfowl.

 

[QC]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

IMHO once they are there, they need to stop the inspections. It's all over but the crying.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

IMHO once they are there, they need to stop the inspections. It's all over but the crying.

Ayuh,.... It was deemed, 'n screamin' that it was the end of the world as We knew it when they showed up here in the Great Lakes too....

Truth is, it weren't so bad...

Big water pumpers needed a refit, but there's been many benefits as well...

Cleaner, clearer water the biggest...

Spiny water fleas, both species are Much worse...
The round gobies seems to be a preferred food for the black bass, 'n walleyes, as well as lake trout...

 

[QC]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

We already have pretty darn clear water. Kind of just happens when you build 500 ft. dams every 100 miles or so . . .

Did the mussels create any businesses? I gotta believe there is some economic upside to replacing stuff

 

[Slip Away]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

They wipe off pretty easy with a stiff brush. Don't really hurt the running gear at all here on the Great Lakes.

 

[OllieC]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

We already have pretty darn clear water. Kind of just happens when you build 500 ft. dams every 100 miles or so . . .

Did the mussels create any businesses? I gotta believe there is some economic upside to replacing stuff

Looks like it did at $1.6m a year.......:eyebrows:

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Did the mussels create any businesses? I gotta believe there is some economic upside to replacing stuff

Probably sells some boat lifts so that you don't get the little buggers clogging up your cooling system.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Probably sells some boat lifts so that you don't get the little buggers clogging up your cooling system.

Ayuh,... Mine don't get as bad as Slip Away's,... 'n like he says, they brush right off,...
Runnin' the barge at plane cleans the runnin' surfaces...

I've never found any evidence of 'em in my coolin' system, nor the boat's I wrench on...
No problems with my camp water either...

The big economic boom was the chlorinators in the water suction pipes....
Water districts, nuke plants, 'n the like,...

 

[jcfitzgerald]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

If they decontaminated all the docks and boats there, and dropped the water level about 40 feet in the heat of summer, that would take them out. From what I have read, they only live in shallow water less than about 30 feet deep. Also read they don't thrive in reservoirs that fluctuate a great deal.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

If they decontaminated all the docks and boats there, and dropped the water level about 40 feet in the heat of summer, that would take them out. From what I have read, they only live in shallow water less than about 30 feet deep. Also read they don't thrive in reservoirs that fluctuate a great deal.

The USGS says quagga mussel can inhabit down to depths of 130 m and possibly deeper.



The zebras and quaggas have had a devastating effect on the Great Lakes fisheries.

 

[jcfitzgerald]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

The USGS says quagga mussel can inhabit down to depths of 130 m and possibly deeper.



The zebras and quaggas have had a devastating effect on the Great Lakes fisheries.

Many reservoirs don't have sufficient dissolved oxygen well below the thermocline to support aquatic life.

 

[greenbush future]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

The USGS says quagga mussel can inhabit down to depths of 130 m and possibly deeper.



The zebras and quaggas have had a devastating effect on the Great Lakes fisheries.

Yes they do, they eat all the micro foods that other native fish must have to continue to survive. I have lake front on Lake Huron, and the Zebra and quags are doing some very bad things for our great lakes. The shells alone are so sharp you will cut your feet if you aren't careful.They still don't know how bad it will impact the native plants and animals, but it will change these lakes forever. Reservoirs are a different thing as they are not natural, but they will only end up costing us more $$. The more public battle we are dealing with in Michigan now is the Asian Carp, and the fact that they wont block the man made canal to the Mississippi river. Obama/Feds wont do what needs to be done, most likely because jobs would be lost. It's really just a matter of time before they are in the great lakes.

 

[crabby captain john]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

I was running walleye charters on Lake Erie when the zebras showed up. Never had a problem with them in my cooling system but never left my boats in the water when not in use. They made the water much more clear. Some of the lures trolled then needed weight added, deeper diving lures used, and 4 downriggers instead of two. Also, many Dipsy Divers were sold! Used more 3 ways with a diver on a 6' leader and a spoon on a 3.5' leader. Catch numbers did not change but limits were caught in less time on the water. Thankfully, I moved from that cold weather and now fish the salt.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

Tell that to the perch and smelt fishermen.
The impact is creeping up the food chain, and many species have all but disappeared.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Well, Lake Powell, it was fun while it lasted

QC is spot on, it's all over but they crying. I knew the boat inspections were only going to hold them off for so long as wildlife was going to transport them from lake-lake. Even an infected reservior upstream from Powell would have eventually infected Powell.

They wipe off pretty easy with a stiff brush. Don't really hurt the running gear at all here on the Great Lakes.

That one isn't too bad, I've seen some boats where the hull was loaded with the quaggas, and they are a bugger to get off gelcoat. Well, atleast the foot is a bugger to get off. I've been boating in infected waters since they appeared 6-7 years ago (or what ever it was) and haven't seen any evidence that my boat have been affected, though I pull mine every trip and it's baking in 100* temps during the summer.