SLELO PRISM Partners FOR MORE INFORMATION What you Share These Goals: CONTACT THE: Should Know PREVENTION St. Lawrence Eastern Lake Ontario Prevent the introduction of invasive species into the SLELO PRISM region. Partnership for Regional About Invasive Species Management EARLY DETECTION & RAPID RESPONSE Tench Detect new and recent invaders and rapidly SLELO PRISM respond to eliminate all individuals within a specific area. C/O The Nature Conservancy COOPERATION (315) 387-3600 x 7724 Share resources, expertise, personnel, equipment, and information. www.sleloinvasives.org INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Collect, utilize, and share information regard- ing surveys, infestations, control methods, Get Involved monitoring, and research. Help find invasive species CONTROL Control invasive species infestations by using of interest in your region. best management practices, methods and tech- For details, contact niques to include: [email protected] ERADICATION - Eliminate all individuals and the seed bank from an area. Stay informed, join our listserv CONTAINMENT - Reduce the spread of established infestations. Follow these steps to join: SUPPRESSION - Reduce the density but not necessarily the total infested area. 1. Email [email protected] RESTORATION 2. Type “join” in subject space Develop and implement effective restoration 3. Leave email body blank and send methods for areas that have been degraded by invasive species and where suppression or con- trol has taken place.

EDUCATION / OUTREACH Increase public awareness and understanding SLELO PRISM of invasive species issues through volunteer “Teaming up to stop monitoring, citizen science and community the spread of outreach. Photo Credits: Cover photo: Midwest Invasive Species Information Network, https://www.misin.msu.edu/facts/detail/? invasive species” project=&id=340&cname=Tench. Tench ID photo credit: http:// www.hlasek.com/tinca_tinca1de.html. Tench sightings map Sunci Avlijas, McGill University, Canada. Cited Resources: (1) NPR News WBFO 88.7 ,https://news.wbfo.org/post/will-tench-be-next- great-lakes-invasive-species-problem (2) Great Lakes Connection, http://ijc.org/greatlakesconnection/en/tag/tench/ . What is Tench? You can Stop the Spread: Tench Identification: Tench (Tinca tinca) are an invasive native Size: Tench can grow up to 27 inches in to Europe and Western Asia. They are a mem- You can help reduce Tench's spread ber of the / family . length and weight up to 12 pounds. The potential by learning how to recognize the Tench was introduced to the U.S. as a food and fish has a slimy texture & tiny scales. In New sport fish, and have been reported in U.S. fish and reporting your sightings. waterways dating as far back as the 1870's(1). York state, search for Tench along the St. Lawrence River between Massena and Cape Tench was illegally introduced to the Richelieu Vincent, NY. Pay special attention to water- River, a tributary of the St. Lawrence River, by bodies near farming ponds. Golden colored (1) an unlicensed fish farm in 1991 . Tench varieties are popular aquarium species. Since this introduction, tench has been Do not use Tench as bait. Never release found in commercial catches located mostly within the northern portions of the St. un-wanted pets or dump unused bait into Color/Description: Tench have dark Lawrence Seaway near Sorel, Canada. water-ways,doing so may spread invasive rounded fins with olive to pale golden However, in 2018, the fish was found near species. coloring and a white bronzy belly and bright Cornwall, and the first Lake Ontario red/orange eyes. They have a terminal sighting was made in the Bay of Quinete mouth with a single on each side. near Belleville, Ontario in Canada(1). These sightings challenge the belief that massive Known Tench sightings found in the hydroelectric dams will act as barriers St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. against the southward spread of tench through the St. Lawrence River system. There is concern as to how far the fish will spread and to the potential impacts tench may have on the aquatic ecosystems unique to the St. Lawrence Eastern Lake Ontario region.

Tench inhabit weedy/muddy water bottoms, and have high reproductive rates, long lifespans and can survive in low-oxygen Below is a photo of a juvenile Tench. environments. They are generalist predators If You Find Tench: Do not use Tench as bait. whose diet includes fish eggs, snails, molluscs and other benthic invertebrates which puts • Note your location. them in direct competition with rare like • Don’t release the specimen, put it on ice. the River Redhorse. Trout, bass and many • Take close-up photos of the specimen. other native fish species are also threatened. • Notify SLELO PRISM at In addition, Tench have the ability introduce non-native parasites into the Great Lakes (2). 315-387-3600 (x 7725) [email protected]