Aquarists Help Spread Exotics

From July 28, 1992 (update #14)

A bizarre story of a zebra mussel introduction to an Ontario reservoir has been reported by the Federation of American Aquarium Societies (FAAS) as a warning to aquarists to help prevent the spread of exotic organisms. The November/December 1991 FAAS Report notes: "One embarrassing incident can definitely be traced to aquarists, that of a Kitchener, Ont., couple who had a sick turtle in their aquarium. They dumped the entire contents of the tank, turtle, dirtwood(sic), rocks and (most importantly) zebra mussels into Laurel Creek Reservoir." The report continues by stating that local aquarium clubs should be looking at increasing public awareness about the potential hazard of releasing aquarium "pets" into local waters. The report pointed to tilapia introductions into California's San Joaquin Valley and the spread of a British aquatic weed (Crassula helmsii) as other examples of the spread of organisms brought about by the aquarium trade.

ID: 19920728-16.

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.