Mussel Infestation in Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park has ceased boating because of a mussel invasion.

If you have planned a boating excursion in the Glacier National Park in the upcoming days, then you should cancel it. Representatives of the park have issued a statement regarding the prohibition of all boating for a temporary period. The decision was made in order to prevent further spreading of mussels and to determine the exact source of the invasion.

This is the first time that the Montana waters of the Glacier National Park were required to deal with a mussel invasion. Fortunately, they were quick to detect the mussel invasion and have already taken action to prevent its spreading while investigating the source. Lauren Alley, one of the representatives of the Park, pointed out that the dangers of mussel invasions. If they manage to infest all the waters of the Park, then they will take the necessary steps to prevent it from spreading to other regions of the country.

One measure to stop their prevention is to temporarily prohibit boating on the lake. The mussels and their larvae can stick to the boat, and if they’re not properly washed away after leaving, they will most surely spread to wherever the boat will be used next.

Fortunately for the Glacier National Park, the infestation was contained only to the Tiber Reservoirs. Nonetheless, all the waters of the park must be investigated if there is even a slight chance of them being infested. The Park representatives have stated their willingness to work will other organizations to quickly address this problem.

One new way to tackle the problem and to quickly find mussel sources is to employ the service of specially trained dogs. The animals can detect them even when they are as small as a seed. Park representatives are hoping that with the help of dogs they can find the mussels more quickly and solve this ecological crisis.

If you’re not familiar with mussels, then know that they are an invasive species in inland lakes. They tend to disrupt the food chain of the lake as they feed on microscopic organism, affect populations of fish in the process. Another major impact of mussels is that they may increase human and wildlife exposure to organic pollutants, which they accumulate in their tissues and release them in their pseudofeces in the lakes.

Image source: Wikimedia

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Karen Jackson

Karen Jackson has always been passionate about technology. All the way through high-school she immersed herself in computers and web-design. Her ambitious nature helped her become a pro in Adobe Photoshop only by watching online videos and working with the program herself. This is also the program that she mostly uses in the creation of websites at her work-place. Technological innovation and gadgets that push the boundaries of what we are comfortable with have always fascinated her, so expect to see some weird gadget reviews coming from her.