Invasive Threats to the North American Sea Lampreys Asian Carp What are Sea Lampreys? Zebra Mussels What are Zebra Mussels? What are Asian Carp? •The sea is an aggressive parasite, equipped with a -filled •The Zebra Mussel is a small non-native mussel originally found in . •The Asian carp is a type of that includes four species: black carp, grass carp, that flares open at the end of its body. Sea lampreys are aquatic • This was transported to North America in the ballast water of a bighead carp, and silver carp. native to the . transatlantic cargo ship and settled into parts of Lake St. Clair. •Adults may be more than 28 kg in weight and 120 cm in length. •Sea lampreys resemble , but unlike eels, they feed on large fish. They can •In less than 10 years zebra mussels spread to all five Great Lakes, •Originally, Asian carp were introduced to the United States as a management tool live in both salt and fresh water. Sea lampreys were accidentally introduced into Mississippi, Tennessee, Hudson, and Ohio River Basins. for aqua culture farms and sewage treatment facilities. The carp have made their the Great Lakes in the early 20th century through shipping . Today, sea •Many inland waters in Michigan are now infested with Zebra Mussels. way north to the Illinois River after escaping from fish farms during massive lampreys are found in all of the Great Lakes. flooding along the Mississippi River. •Asian carp are a tremendous threat to the Great Lakes and could devastate the Zebra Mussels in the Great Lakes lakes if they enter our Great Lakes ecosystem.

Why are Asian Carp a problem? •Due to their large size, ravenous appetite, and rapid rate of reproduction, Asian carp pose a significant threat to the Great Lakes ecosystem by consuming large quantities of phytoplankton and competing with native fish for . •Asian Carp can consume up to 40 percent of their body weight in plankton per Source: Indiana Department of Natural Resources day. • Photographer: unknown Carp have shown an affinity for becoming the dominant large fish species over Source: http://roferguson.wikispaces.com/Sea+Lamprey more desirable native species or established fish that are recreationally and economically important. Problems They are Creating •Asian carp aggressively out-compete and eventually displace native fish •’s have a huge impact on the Great Lakes fishery. Since they did not Map produced by the U.S. altogether. naturally occur in the great lakes, they are aggressive and have predaceous Geological Survey •They pose physical threats to boaters because of their leaping ability. Humans behavior that gives them an advantage over native fish. have been known to be seriously injured when the carp have jumped into the •They prey on important species like trout; living off the blood and body fluid of paths of open boats speeding along the surface. adult fish. Problems Zebra Mussels Create •Sea lampreys have caused a major collapse of , white fish and chub •Zebra mussels have disrupted the traditional aquatic food chains of populations throughout the Great Lakes many inland lakes. When zebra mussels enter into these fragile systems, their voracious filter feeding depletes the availability of microscopic Controlling Sea Lampreys organisms that play a critical part in each lake's ecological food web. As a The Great Lakes Fishery Commission works with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the U.S. result, valued sport fish are impacted. Zebra mussels consume Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Army Locations of Barrier Dams to stop considerable amounts of beneficial microscopic organisms and this Corps of Engineers to undertake sea lamprey Sea Lamprey migration creates less food for larval and juvenile that support sport and control. The control program uses several commercial fisheries. techniques to attack sea lampreys. This effort •The zebra mussel attaches to hard surfaces located at moderate depths. (known as "integrated sea lamprey This affinity for hard surfaces has made water intake structures, like Source: United States Geological Survey management") includes those used for power and municipal water treatment plants, susceptible •Lampricide control (Currently, the primary method to control sea lampreys uses the to colonization. Since 1989, some plants located in areas of extensive lampricide TFM. TFM kills sea lamprey larvae zebra mussel colonization have reported significant reductions in Control and Prevention of the Asian Carp in streams with little or no impact on other pumping capabilities and occasional shutdowns. •Electrical barriers were installed in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship to repel fish and wildlife. TFM is not harmful to •An example of this happened in Monroe, Michigan. In 1989, the city Asian carp and prevent them from getting into . humans or other at the lost it’s water supply for three days because massive amounts of zebra •In 2009, part of the canal was poisoned to prevent Asian carp from getting from concentration applied.) mussels clogged the city’s water-intake pipelines. the canal to the lake. •Sea lamprey barriers (Sea lamprey barriers have been constructed to block the upstream Controlling the Zebra Mussel Created by: migration of spawning sea lampreys; most Yvette Niyitegeka Kierra Hughey Source: Great Lake Invaders Once zebra mussels become established in a water body, they are barriers allow other fish to pass with minimal Kendra Wade Paxton Klaver disruption. Barriers have reduced or impossible to eradicate with the technology available today. Many eliminated altogether lampricide treatment on chemicals kill zebra mussels, but these exotics are so tolerant and tough Lori Barber’s AP Human Geography many streams.) that everything in the water would have to be poisoned to destroy the •Sea lamprey traps (Sea lamprey traps are J.W. Sexton High School mussel. Most commercial water users rely on chemicals such as chlorine, operated at various locations throughout the Lansing, Michigan Great Lakes, often in association with barriers. filters, or mechanical scraping to remove mussels from their intake pipes Traps are designed to catch lampreys as they and facilities. travel upstream to . Sea lampreys caught in the traps are used for research.)