Round Goby (Neogobius melanostomus)
Rusty Crayfish (Orconectes rusticus)
Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)
Sea Squirt (Didemnum vexillum)
Spiny Water Flea (Bythotrephes longimanus)
Veined Rapa Whelk (Rapana venosa)
White Spotted Jellyfish (Phyllorhiza punctata)
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)
Zebra Mussels
• Introduced in 1986 into Lake St. Clair
near Detroit in ballast water discharges;
now infest waters from Vermont to Oklahoma
and Ontario to the Gulf of Mexico.
— Great Lakes water users spend $30
million annually to monitor and
control zebra mussels.
— Causing massive changes in the
Great Lakes ecosystem, including
elimination of native mussels and
toxic algae blooms
— Substantial concern about impacts
on fishery resources and fishery restoration
efforts.
Mitten Crabs in San Francisco Bay/Inland
Delta, CA
• Have spread rapidly since found in South
San Francisco Bay in 1992; now present
throughout the estuary.
• Burrowing threatens banks and levees/
dikes protecting agriculture and urban
areas.
• Damages rice fields by consuming rice
shoots and burrowing.
• Compete with commercially important
species like crawfish.
• Damage fishing nets and catch.
• Nuisance to recreational fishermen (e.g.,
steal bait).
• Also have been found in Louisiana and
Lake Erie.
Section 8: State and Local Regulations 97
What can you do?
• Boat Inspection
• All watercraft are potential vectors for
spreading aquatic nuisance species. Many
kinds of aquatic pests, including both
plants and animals, are easily carried to
new habitat by trailered boats. Thus, voluntary
boat and trailer inspections, particularly
by boaters themselves, are an
essential part of preventing the inadvertent
transfer of nuisance species from one
water body to the next.
• The Western Regional Panel on Aquatic
Nuisance Species leads an effort to prevent
the westward spread of zebra mussels
and other ANS in North Ameica. Voluntary
boat inspections and boater surveys
have been fundamental to this Initiative.
For more information on voluntary boat
inspections and boater surveys please visit
the 100th Meridian Initiative’s website at
http://100thmeridian.org.
• The 100th Meridian Initiative is one
of many partners of the federal “Stop
Aquatic Hitchhikers” campaign. Other
partners include numerous federal and
state agencies, non-governmental organizations
(NGOs), schools, commercial
businesses, and recreational clubs. For
more information, please visit http://
www.protect yourwaters. com/
Simple Preventative
Procedures:
• Remove any visible mud, plants, fish or
animals before transporting equipment
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/100thmeridian.org