February 13, 2002

Zebra Mussels Muscle Into More Michigan Inland Lakes

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Zebra mussels are now infesting Michigan's 10th largest inland lake and, for the first time, two lakes in the Upper Peninsula. Higgins Lake (Roscommon County), Antoine Lake (Dickinson County) and Fortune Pond (Iron County) were among the 16 lakes confirmed infested for the first time in 2001, according to Michigan Sea Grant.

The total number of confirmed infested lakes stands at 165, an 11 percent increase over the 149 lakes listed in 2000. Six of the state's 10 largest lakes are now infested.

In 2001, volunteers found the invasive species in lakes in the following counties: Antrim (Birch), Branch (Lake of the Woods), Cass (Finch, Long), Dickinson (Antoine), Iosco (Long), Iron (Fortune Pond), Lapeer (Nepessing), Livingston (East Crooked, Orr, Sandy Bottom), Muskegon (Big Blue), Oakland (Angelus, Crescent, Greens) and Roscommon (Higgins).
All of last year's reports came from lakefront property owners and resource managers who found adult colonies of the mussels clinging to boats, docks, dams, water pumps and equipment.

Twenty-five percent of the reports came from participants in the Brick Watch program, initiated in 2000 by Michigan Sea Grant, Michigan Lake and Stream Associations (ML&SA), and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

Sea Grant Extension specialist Mike Klepinger said citizen monitoring, especially for adult zebra mussels, has dramatically increased scientists' knowledge and understanding of how and why invading organisms spread once they arrive in the Great Lakes basin.

Citizen participation in monitoring has gradually increased the number of lakes surveyed and the accuracy of surveys on individual lakes, providing early detection of zebra mussel populations and helping prevent damage to boats, beaches and lake ecosystems.

"Inland lakes with a high level of transient recreational boating activity due to their large size and public access and those in close proximity to infested waters are particularly vulnerable," Klepinger said.

Zebra mussels can contaminate lakes when boaters and anglers unknowingly transport the clinging veligers (immature mussels) from infested waters via boats, trailers and fishing equipment. Early detection allows lake managers and citizen groups to erect signs at boat launches and develop volunteer programs for boat inspections and cleanings. It also lowers the incidence of unwitting movement to neighboring lakes.

Organizations and individuals interested in participating in Brick Watch should contact ML&SA's Pearl Bonnell at (989) 257-3583. For more information about citizen lake monitoring and zebra mussels, including Sea Grant's database of all monitored and confirmed infested lakes in Michigan, visit <www.miseagrant.umich.edu/zebra.html> on the Web.

ML&SA is a statewide organization of more than 375 local lake and stream associations. Michigan Sea Grant is a cooperative program of Michigan State University and the University of Michigan in Great Lakes and marine research, education and outreach.