More than 180 different aquatic invasive species, most introduced as a byproduct of the shipping industry, can be found in the Great Lakes’ six quadrillion gallons of fresh water. Some live in relatively small numbers, causing little trouble. Others come onto the scene and wreak havoc on the food web, pushing aside or completely eliminating native species to the detriment of the entire ecosystem. Sometimes this damage happens seemingly overnight. That was the case with the zebra mussel. They zebra mussels make the water in a sense too clear. One of the most well documented impacts is on our native mussels. Zebra mussels are anchoring themselves by the thousands to native mussels making it impossible for the native mussel to function. As many as 10,000 zebra mussels have attached to a single native mussel. Our natives have all but disappeared in Lake St. Clair and the western basin of Lake Erie. Zebra mussels also are filtering the Great Lakes at an amazing rate, making the lake very clear. Most people assume that this increased visibility in the water must mean the water is "cleaner". Not true. All they have done is filter out all the algae which normally would be food for native microscopic organisms. As the lakes clear, the brighter light levels cause aquatic plants to increase in number and size. This increased plant growth can be beneficial to some fish such as northern pike and to yellow perch. However, the plants do cause problems for recreational boaters and swimming beaches, and can increase taste-and-odor problems in drinking water supplies, and can block water-intake pipes during storm events.
One drastic impact of the zebra mussel invasion is the near extinction of native American unionid clams in Lake St. Clair and in the western basin of Lake Erie. Zebra mussels attach and build colonies on the clams, reducing their ability to move, feed, and breed, eventually leading to the death of the clams within a couple of years.
Zebra mussels have had positive impacts on parts of the Great Lakes ecosystems. Many native fish, birds, and other animals eat young and adult zebra mussels. Migratory ducks have changed their flight patterns in response to zebra mussel colonies. Lake sturgeon feed heavily on zebra mussels, as do yellow perch, freshwater drum, catfish, and all the sunfish. The increase in aquatic plants provides excellent nursery areas for young fish and other animals.
The sources are reliable. I got my sources from osu.edu. The articles really only have one viewpoint that these invasive mussels are bad. The information was pretty accurate. The sources were reliable. Before I researched this topic I didn’t know we spent almost 5 million dollars in the last decade to take care of this problem. These articles didn’t really have a huge impact on me because there’s really nothing I can do.
