New map outlines risk of zebra musse...(difficulty becoming established in low-c...)

If there isnt enough calcium in the water, you probably arent going to get zebra or quagga mussels, Whittier pointed out. If you have sufficient calcium, it doesnt necessarily mean you have a problem. These mussels also need colonies in still water to maintain populations over the long term. In rivers, this means there needs to be an invaded upstream lake, canal or reservoir to supply new larvae.

Zebra mussels were first found in the lower Great Lakes in the late 1980s, likely introduced to the United States through ballast water in large ships. Over the next dozen years, they spread rapidly throughout parts of the eastern U.S. and are now found in all of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain, and in large portions of the St. Lawrence, Ohio, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Hudson and Cumberland rivers. They also are found in numerous inland lakes in the New York and the upper Midwest.

Quagga mussels were introduced to the Great Lakes at about the same time, but spread more slowly and initially settled in deeper water. Because they spread slowly, they have received less attention from the public and from researchers. But now quagga mussels are found in all of the Great Lakes and in shallower waters, and appear to be replacing zebra mussels.

The spread of invasive mussels from one lake to another can occur via connecting waterways or through recreational boaters, according to Alan Herlihy, an OSU research professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife.

If people put their boat into a lake with these mussels one weekend, then take their boat out and put it into a different lake the next weekend, they may be transporting live mussel larvae or adults, Herlihy said. There are indications that adul
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