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Invasion Hits Lake of the Ozarks: Officials Worry That the Destructive Mollusks Could Spread From Lake to the Missouri River.

Posted on: Saturday, 24 June 2006, 06:00 CDT

By Bill Graham, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Jun. 24--Zebra mussels, responsible for millions of dollars in damage to utility pipes and boats, have been found in Lake of the Ozarks.

The invasive species from Eurasia attach to solid objects and form dense colonies. They harm wildlife by filtering nutrients from water that are vital to native fish, and they displace native mussels.

Zebra mussels arrived in the Great Lakes via ships in the 1980s. They have since clogged utility pipes and marred boat hulls there and in the Mississippi River.

"This is certainly something that we're going to be watching very closely," said Tim Fox, a spokesman for AmerenUE, which sells electricity generated at the lake's Bagnell Dam.

The dime- to quarter-size mussels are present in Eldorado Reservoir in Kansas and the Walnut River downstream.

But this is the first time zebra mussels have been found in Missouri in a large reservoir. This infestation has the potential to spread them downstream in the Osage River and in the Missouri River.

One female zebra mussel can produce up to 1 million offspring a year. Those larval young, called veligers, drift with currents.

The mussels spread when veligers survive in bait buckets or boat live wells, said Brian Canaday, invasive-species coordinator for the Missouri Department of Conservation. Adults attached to a boat hull can survive up to four days out of water. Those found at the lake probably arrived accidentally attached to a boat.

"These were found by an amateur scuba diver," Canaday said.

On June 15, the man pulled some lawn furniture from beneath his private dock near the Mile 8 marker on the lake's Gravois arm. Attached was a handful of zebra mussels, and he reported them to biologists.

Divers have searched other docks in the same vicinity and found about 50 mussels, Canaday said.

"It's too early to tell how widespread they are and what's going to happen there," he said.

Biologists hope the mussels do not thrive, Canaday said. But only time will tell.

Chemical controls would harm native fish. He said some sport fish eat the mussels, but not in large enough numbers to control populations.

AmerenUE has yet to find zebra mussels on its equipment, Fox said. But the company will inspect more frequently.

Boaters in Missouri and Kansas are encouraged to thoroughly clean and dry their boats, motors and gear before moving between lakes.

"This is one of those things where everybody has a role to play to help avoid problems," Canaday said.

To reach Bill Graham, call (816) 234-5906 or send e-mail to bgraham@kcstar.com.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri)

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