Study: Quagga mussels could thrive in Tahoe
By Jeff DeLong, Reno Gazette-Journal
Quagga mussels could survive and reproduce in Lake Tahoe’s waters, particularly in places where a different aquatic invader is already present and where algae is flourishing in shallow waters, a new study suggests.
Research conducted by scientists from University of Nevada, Reno and the Desert Research Institute confirms earlier work that indicates adult quagga mussels can live in Tahoe’s water and that successful reproduction can occur and juvenile mussels survive to repeat the cycle as adults.
Experts had hoped low calcium levels in the landmark alpine lake might help protect Tahoe from major infestations of the type in Southern Nevada’s Lake Mead and other water bodies around the country. It appears that’s not the case.
Why not get our local State and Fed Environmental Agency employees out from behind their desks and put them to work blanketing the shallow shores right now to kill the mussels at historic low lake levels…..
Might do them some good to get some exercise and earn their pay – rather that speculate behind their computer screens drawing graphs.
Greetings Mr Toxic as of today there are no Quagas or Zebras in Tahoe.Well at least not that we know of.Ive found the most effective way to kill the Asian clams, which provide the needed calcium level in the water,for mussel habitat, is to hit them with a hammer.This is very time consuming , but the survival rate , after being hit with a hammer is zero.( kidding of course )
but seriously , as a boat captain on the Lake for many years I have had numerous conversations with visitors from the Great Lakes areas , who have said that the clarity of some areas infested with mussels increased from 3 feet to 15 feet.They are filter feeders, as are the Asian clams, and actually remove nutrients from the waters they occupy, thereby increasing the clarity of the water.The health of the lake is typically determined by lake clarity.
Unfortunately the downside of these unwelcome travelers , is that they attach themselves, and their large families to everything in the water.
the bottoms of boats, pier pilings,water intakes , rocks, and anything that doesn’t move,too often.
The ongoing boat inspections have been very effective ,to date but sadly there is always someone who try’s to circumvent the rules and slip by the inspection process.
One such vessel that was somehow able to bypass the inspection was intercepted at the TKM , with mussels attached to the hull!
unlikely , but if the inspections could be funded from state or federal piggy banks I think the general public would be less likely to try and avoid inspections.
50 cents worth from Kiwi.
Steve, there are many factual and conceptual problems in your comment. In short, there is nothing good about mussels or clams, lake clarity is only one indicator, and federal moneys funds a lot of the program and science.
I am a supporter of mandatory decontamination at every infested lake that is 100% user funded. If gives the user an incentive to keep it out of their lake, discourages people from using the lake and leaving, and reduces transport risk.
Steve,
The fact is we do have plenty of invasive clam like species like never before. I took a break on the shore off Lake Tahoe Inn one afternoon before a Tahoe Conservancy meeting and noticed a huge deposit of clam shells on that shore. I’ve been here over 38 years and never experienced such an invasion.
But what caught my eye is when I got back into that CC meeting. It was all about an agency more concerned about their new rip-off “Land Assets Sales” to float their empire – than protecting the lake. It enraged me that this and or other local agencies are now “all about themselves and sustaining their salaries and jobs”. That is why I made that comment that they should all come out from behind their computers and do some field work to earn their pay.