Zebra Mussels In Bull

[Quillback]

Saw this on another board, thought you folks that fish Bull might find this interesting:

#31 Yesterday, 04:27 PM

Zebra Mussels

The zebra mussels were first found in the Lead Hill Area (Elbow Creek) in 2007. There are many speculations about how they got there. I have my own idea but I won’t be elaborate because again it would be merely anecdotal and not based on facts. However, shortly after that they were found in Lake Taneycomo and above Tucker Hollow in Bull Shoals. So I suspect they had been around the area for a few years before that.

Unfortunately, they are here now. 2014 was a banner year for them. The cooler than average summer (for the most part) and stable water conditions during the late spring and summer made for perfect breeding conditions. Combine that with an expanding population and you got trouble!!

We spent a lot of time diving this summer. The numbers of zebra mussels are much higher from Lead Hill and above. Frankly it is scary on the bottom in the 10 to 20 foot zone. As you move down lake, their numbers are not as high but they are still very numerous.

We get a lot of questions about what are the impacts of the zebra mussels and what are we (AGFC) going to do about it. First to the impacts of the zebra mussels. We have been telling everyone that we are not going to speculate on the impacts of the zebra mussels until the population stops spreading and equalizes out. Again, we would be merely speculating at this point and we do not want to sound all dome and gloom. I know that is odd coming from a government agency. The zebra mussels really took off in Lake of the Ozarks when they were first discovered there. It was all doom and gloom then. However, that population actually reached equilibrium and then crashed. They are unfortunately making a rebound in the last couple of years but not at the numbers when they were first found. I suspect that will occur at Bull Shoals at some point in the future.

Now to control of zebra mussel. There is a hot new biological pesticide called

Zequanox

, It works but it is only 80 to 99% effective. For a one time treatment on Bull Shoals Lake it would cost between 95 and 499 million dollars. If I was guessing, I would say it would likely be closer to the larger number. So that is out of the picture. Blue Catfish, Redear Sunfish, and Drum will feed on Zebra Mussel but that isn’t their first choice. We currently stock 44,000 blue catfish each year and have been doing that for many years. We have stocked redear sunfish in the past. I have requested them to be stocked in 2015. Drum will likely be our best friend at this point. They will feed on the ZM the most. However, you must remember that zebra mussels are very prolific. One female can produce between 10,000 and 50,000 veligers (young ZM) during each spawn event. Each female can spawn 4 to 5 times each year. So you can see that predators have a hard time keeps up with that rate of spawning. Someone mentioned drawdown. Bull Shoals Boat Dock found them as deep as 60 to 80 foot this year in the boat dock cove. So it would have to be a massive draw down. Also the adults can unattach themselves from rocks and move to deeper water. The best scenario would be a hot dry summer where the water level did get very low and then a very high water year the next year. That is my hope!!

We have shut down the Pot Shoals Facility on Bull Shoals Lake. We did not want to take the chance of spreading the mussels to other water bodies. This will not impact the stocking of fish in Bull Shoals and so far hasn’t impacted the fish stocking around the state.

Basscat is right about strict regulations about drain, clean, and dry. This is most important for boat or docks that have stayed in the water for an extended period of time. Any extended stay in infested waters allows adults to attach to the boat or equipment. If you are fishing for the day, I recommend making sure that your boat is drained of all water. The days of fishing both lakes in the same day are becoming much harder. You need to always fish Bull last. As sportsmen, we need to do the best we can not to spread ZM. I realize that we can’t sway everyone that enters and leaves our lakes to use best judgment practices to stop the spread but we can at least control our one local water. That allows us to know that we are not contributing to the spread of the ZM.

Are they in Lake Norfork? We have not had any confirm finding of them in the lake. That doesn’t mean they are not there. We did spend a lot of time underwater in Norfork too. We also stay in touch with a lot of the divers in the area who keep a look out for them. We do plan on conducting veligers tows in May and June around the marinas to see if we can find veligers. However this is like finding a needle in a haystack.

Are they in Table Rock? Again there have been no confirmed findings. We do meet with MDC every year to discuss issues with the White River Lakes. They had some very, very, very (I could keep going) close calls this past two years. They have luckily stopped or had citizen report boats that have been incrusted with adults. These are usually house boats that stay in an infected water body for an extend period of time. Those boats do get quarantined for 21 days.

Zebra Mussels are going to be something that we will have to continue to deal with in the future of Bull Shoals Lake. We need to figure out how to adapt to them in the lake because they are not going away in the near future.

I know Earl and Jim know how to get ahold of me but anyone else is welcome to contact me on here or at

jtrisley@agfc.state.ar.us

.

[dtrs5kprs]

Hard to imagine they will not be in all the White River lakes eventually.

[Quillback]

Yeah, sadly I think it is just a matter of time.

[fishinwrench]

Interesting observation regarding ZM... If you WANTED to introduce them into one end of a lake then you should dump them in at the opposite end.

I say this because the places where I notice them are never anywhere near boat ramps.

[Ham]

_{I'm all for dumping more Redear in the lake. I love that little fish.}

[Diamond City Fisher]

Yes, there is a good population Zebra Mussels in the Lead Hill part of the lake. There are attached to almost every rock in the swimbeach area.

[Ham]

The Zebra Muscles are well established in the main river channel thru the Greenbriar area.

[raise the motor]

When last down in November I noticed every rock at the shoreline had mussels attached on Mountain Creek (off Gulley Spring Creek northeast of Oakland).

I will look more closely next week to see if they resemble the Zebra.

[Bluff-Bassin]

When last down in November I noticed every rock at the shoreline had mussels attached on Mountain Creek (off Gulley Spring Creek northeast of Oakland).

I will look more closely next week to see if they resemble the Zebra.

Yeah they are thick through the Oakland area all around the saddle.

[Old plug]

One thing about zebra mussels that really bother me is that I read they retain toxins in their shell. If you have certain species of fish feeding on them heavily that is like getting a supper shot of whatever is in there and it will build up. I have a very strong notion it had something to do with the decrease in blue cat fishing on LOZ