Invasive smallmouth bass gain foothold in Lake Tahoe
By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee
Invasive smallmouth bass have become established in Lake Tahoe, posing what researchers call a “much more ferocious threat” to native fish than anything that has come before.
“We’ve had reports of smallmouth bass before, but now we’ve 100-percent confirmed its presence in Lake Tahoe,” said Kevin Thomas, environmental scientist at the California Department of Fish and Game. “The population could explode and put more stress on the native fish.”
The finding was announced Monday by the University of Nevada, Reno. It came during a UNR project with Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which removed 5,000 invasive fish from the near-shore aquatic zone.