California, Here We Come

From October, 1995 (Update #25)

Like 1930s dust bowl refugees, zebra mussels keep trying to cross the California border in search of water. So far, the quest has been in vain, though many biologists believe it's only a matter of time before zebra mussels show up in California waters. California border station inspectors have found at least six trailer-towed boats with zebra mussels attached to their hulls - four within the last six months, according to Gannett wire service reports. Depending on the route, that's over a 1,000-mile journey from known infested waters. Although the news story reported that two boats had live mussels on them, California Fish and Game's Steve Taylor said he was unaware that any boats were carrying live specimens. "We're very concerned about it," said Taylor, who's unconvinced any live specimens have made it to California. "It would be a horrendous threat. We want to see them kept out of the state." California spends millions every year fighting other aliens, such as northern pike and white bass, according to Taylor. Boats and trailers are stopped at state agriculture inspection stations and quarantined until they are scoured for any mollusks. The animals have been detected by inspectors at Needles, Yermo and Truckee, which is just west of Reno, Nev., near Lake Tahoe.

ID: 199510-1.

The Zebra Mussel Update was a 4- to 8-page quarterly national newsletter published by the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute from May 1990 through May 1997. The ZMU documented the spread of the zebra mussel -- an exotic nuisance mussel -- through North America's freshwater environments, especially the Great Lakes, and on efforts to control it.