Life with the Aliens

From May, 1995 (Update #24)

NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. - The following observations of a zebra mussel infestation veteran may offer some reassurance to homeowners living on newly infested lakes. David Grandstaff is president of the Lake Association for Lake Wawasee, one of the first zebra mussel-infested inland lakes in North America. Now, after a few years of living with the infestation, Grandstaff said most of Lake Wawasee's water users are using the lake without much mussel interference. Grandstaff said water clarity improved in 1993, two years after mussels were first sighted in the lake. (He also pointed out that in 1993 about 30 percent of the homes on the lake were connected to a new sewage system.) In 1994, more submerged plants were observed in the lake, though it was an unusually dry summer - low lake levels could have also enhanced plant growth. Grandstaff said that he knew of no instances where mussels had caused severe boat or engine damage. However, boat maintenance was a great nuisance, he said. A lot of lakeshore property owners now use boat lifts because "they don't like to clean boat bottoms." Grandstaff also said beach-goers were bothered by sharp mussel shells, and that he "wished he had the Aquasocks concession." Grandstaff laughed off the notion that property values had declined due to the mussels, adding that he would be glad to discuss his experiences with lakeshore residents in other areas who may be facing their own zebra mussel problems. He can be contacted at (219) 982-8713.

ID: 199505-3.

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.