"Once the critters are here, they're here forever." Russell Moll, Acting director of Michigan Sea Grant in Ann Arbor

The following information was taken from a variety of sources on the World Wide Web. A perusal of this information suggests that the construction of a boat launch on the east end of Deer Lake, as planned by the MDNR, poses a highly significant risk for introducing several forms of exotic species into Deer Lake with catastrophic ecological consequences. I have not investigated any sources of the following information, but I have no reason to question the validity or realiability of the data provided For more complete information and references, visit the web sites listed.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~nlacros/zebramussel.html

Zebra Mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) pose significant and very real threats to the social, economic, and ecological well being of the Great Lakes and other North American waters.

While this is partially true, control can only be defined as "slowing or preventing the spread; range reduction of a species; mitigation of site specific conditions, such as allowing for the treatment of water intake systems to remove colonies of zebra mussels; or cleaning beaches after major storm events which wash thousands of dead zebra mussels ashore" (Coscarelli, 1995). Control of an aquatic nuisance species is not the eradication of the organism from the habitat. It means a reduction in numbers or effect of the species in question. With the growing realization that the zebra mussel problem will not be easily solved or attenuated, public perception has taken a more realistic view of aquatic nuisance species control.

Zebra mussels are filter feeders. Despite being small in size, each adult is capable of filtering a liter of water a day, removing almost every phytoplankton, zooplankton and algae in the process. Experts estimate that Lake Erie's zebra mussel population filters the entire volume of the lake's western basin every week (Wittman, 1999). This constant and effective filtering has increased Lake Erie's water clarity by almost 600 percent and has reduced some forms of phytoplankton, the basis of the food chain, by as much as 80 percent (Wittman, 1999). The increased water clarity has allowed light to penetrate deeper into the water column, increasing the density of rooted aquatic vegetation, benthic forms of algae and some forms of insect-like benthic organisms (Wittman, 1999). One direct consequence of the water clarity caused by zebra mussels was a series of beach closings in Lake St. Clair. This was due to harmful concentrations of certain types of bacteria and massive amounts of aquatic plants. Both of these phenomenon have been linked to high populations of zebra mussels (Coscarelli, 1995). The mussel has also caused the near extinction of many types of native unionid clams in Lake St. Clair and the western basin of Lake Erie. The zebra mussel will attach itself to the native clams, eventually killing them Because of the huge volumes of water they filter and their high body-fat content, zebra mussel can accumulate about 10 times more PCPs and other toxins than native mussels (Wittman, 1999). These are transferred up the food chain to higher organisms like ducks and fish that will eat the mussels. This has the potential to greatly affect the contaminant cycling in the Great Lakes. The zebra mussel has radically changed the ecosystem of the lakes, and many effects are still unknown.

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality <http://www.deq.state.mi.us/ogl/plan.html>

It is the harmful aquatic nuisance species (ANS), such as the zebra mussel, ruffe, goby, spiny water flea, Eurasian watermilfoil and others that arrived here unexpectedly, which provide the focal point for this State Management Plan (plan).

These species have the potential to cause significant ecological problems because they have been introduced into a habitat in which there are no natural controls, such as pathogens, parasites, and predators. Lack of natural controls in a new habitat may allow a species to grow at or near its potential, exponential growth rate. If such species become established, they may disrupt species relationships in the new habitat. As a nuisance species proliferates, other species relationships change in the habitat. The introduced species may prey upon, outcompete, or cause disease in native species.

Another important aquatic nuisance species already established in the Great Lakes Basin is the ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernuus), a small perch-like, Eurasian fish.

In Europe the ruffe feeds on whitefish eggs and competes with other more desirable fish. The spiny dorsal fins of the ruffe discourage predation by other fish. In Lake Superior, the species of fish that is most affected by the ruffe is the yellow perch. Populations of perch have declined up to 75% in water bodies where ruffe have become established.

The round goby (Neogobius melanostomus)is an abundant species with origins in the Black and Caspian Seas. They are a small fish that feed chiefly on bivalves, amphipod crustaceans, small fish, and fish eggs. It is also believed this fish was introduced into the Great Lakes from discharged ballast water. Consumption studies of fish suggests round gobies might have a detrimental impact on native species through competition for food and predation on eggs and young fish.

The spiny water flea (Bythotrephes cederstroemi)is also believed to have entered the waters of the Great Lakes from discharged ballast water. Although its average length is rarely more than one centimeter, this large predaceous zooplankter can have a profound effect on a lake's plankton. The spiny water flea sometimes competes directly with young fish for food. Because this organism can reproduce many times faster than fish, it could monopolize the food supply at times, to the eventual detriment of the fish. Although Bythotrephes can also fall prey to fish, its spine seems to frustrate most small fish, which experience great difficulty swallowing the animal.

Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum), a nonindigenous aquatic plant, reached the midwestern states between the 1950s and 1980s. In nutrient rich lakes watermilfoil can form thick underwater stands of tangled stems and vast mats of vegetation at the water's surface. In shallow areas the plant can interfere with water recreation such as boating, fishing, and swimming. The plant's floating canopy can also crowd out dominant native water plants.

Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), is a perennial wetland plant native to Europe and Asia. It was introduced into the United States in the early 1800s and continues to spread. The plant is impacting Michigan wetland ecosystems by changing the structure, function, and productivity of the wetlands. The plant forms dense monoculture stands, sometimes hundreds of acres in size, that displace native vegetation and threaten the biotic integrity of wetland ecosystems. The loss of plant species richness and diversity has eliminated natural foods and cover essential to many wetland wildlife species.

Once established in large, open aquatic systems, harmful, nonindigenous species such as those described above have proven impossible to eradicate. These species represent only a small percentage of the most harmful invaders to arrive in Michigan. Control of numbers and range extensions may, in specific instances, be attempted, although usually at great cost, continuous effort, and limited results.

Sea Grant Nonindigenous Species Site <http://www.sgnis.org/www/spiny.htm>

The spiny water flea, Bythotrephes (bith-o-TREH-feez) cederstroemi, a small predacious crustacean, has an average length slightly larger than 1 centimeter (0.4 inches) of which 70% is a long, sharp, barbed tail spine. First introduced into the Great Lakes ecosystem in 1984 via ballast water that was discharged into Lake Huron, they have spread to all of the Great Lakes by 1987 and currently infect inland lakes in Michigan and Southern Ontario. Their rapid reproduction, general lack of predators and direct competition with young fish for food yields them the potential to alter the food webs of the Great Lakes.

http://members.aol.com/nerbonne/bytho.htm

Spiny Water Flea gif

April 8, 1996

http://detroitnews.com/menu/stories/43003.htm

Michigan Looks for Help/The Detroit News

Associated Press

LANSING -- Michigan, in conjunction with the federal government, other states and universities, is working on a plan to deal with foreign aquatic plants and pests that are fouling the Great Lakes and other water systems.

The pests include small fish, a beautiful but fast-spreading plant, the sea lamprey and zebra mussel.

Since their introduction into the area, they have replaced native species, altered the ecosystem and cost millions of dollars to control or in damage to structures and industries.

"Once these get in the system, you're playing defense all the way," said G. Tracy Mehan, III, director of the Office of the Great Lakes in the state Department of Environmental Quality.

"They're finding species in Saginaw Bay they can't even identify," he said. "The threat of exotic species and the loss of habitat are moving to the top of the list.

"We don't know the full dimensions of the problem. Who knows over time what might be injected into the system? I think we're on the ground floor of this."

Some of the new species are familiar to Michigan folk.

The sea lamprey, now making a comeback, again threatens the lake trout population. The zebra mussel clogs water intakes and has nearly eliminated clams in Lake St. Clair. Purple Loosestrife, a pretty wetlands plant, crowds out native water plants and interferes with boating and fishing.

Others are more unfamiliar. The spiny water flea competes with young fish for food. The round goby is a small fish that may feed on fish eggs and young fish. The ruffe competes with other fish, and is blamed for sharp drops in yellow perch.

None came from here. They have been innocently introduced, carried into Michigan by unwary travelers or -- increasingly -- spilled into state waters when ships unload ballast water before taking on more cargo.

Once they're in Michigan's Great Lakes waters, it's a short step to spreading into the state's inland lakes and streams.

Officials say there are almost 140 known exotic species in Michigan. A few, like chinook salmon, are intended and beneficial, but others are a surprise and damaging.

"You can hardly overstate the problem," said Russell Moll, acting director of Michigan Sea Grant in Ann Arbor, a university-based research program.

"We say the zebra mussel is our poster child, but it's only an indication of how serious the problem is," he said. "The whole food web of the Great Lakes has been altered."

So Mehan's office has issued a plan to combat "non-indigenous aquatic nuisance species" in Michigan. It has been submitted to a national Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force, which was set up under a 1990 federal law. It seeks $466,700 over three years to finance information and education efforts, monitoring of the problem and technical assistance to private facilities.

It aims at preventing the introduction of new species, limiting the spread of existing animals and relieving their impact.

"An established non-indigenous (non-native) organism in the Great Lakes ecosystem is impossible to eradicate," the management plan states. The cost of the zebra mussel invasion alone was put at $400 million-$500 million a year for the next decade by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

According to Mehan, plans to tackle the problem include:

* Urging people to clean their boats, empty bilge buckets and wash equipment to prevent organisms from hitching a ride in secret.

* Pursuing new restrictions on ballast water releases.

* Studying the use of chemicals, heat, filtration, barriers and other means to destroy or repel invading organisms before they gain a foothold in the Great Lakes or grow too populous.

* Figuring out how to abate the harmful ecological, economic and public health effects of nuisance species.

Mehan said it's crucial that other states address the problem, too. New York was the first to issue such a management plan.

"I think they're coming on line," he said. "We hope it creates a bit of a groundswell. It's not just a Great Lakes problem."

He displayed a map showing zebra mussels extending down the Mississippi River; an outbreak of cholera in Mobile, Ala., was traced to discharged ballast water.

"There may be a human health impact to this," Mehan said.

Michael J. Donahue, executive director of the Great Lakes Commission, an eight-state compact which promotes the interests of the area in Washington, declared "Michigan is the cutting edge" of exotic species control.

"The biggest challenge is to make sure this receives enough funding and public support to successfully implement it," he said.

"Anything is better than what we've got now," Moll said. "Once the critters are here, they're here forever."

Copyright 1996, The Detroit News