Wendy Brown, Invasive Species Council, RCO, on “Invasive mudsnails in Capitol Lake”:

New Zealand mud snail found in October 2009: “perfect invader”, tiny, parthenogenic, fast reproducing, dense, tolerant of moderate salinty levels

Impacts: consumes large quantities of primary production; out-competes natives; not a good source of food for fish, as they pass through undigested, restricted recreational opportunities, costs to aquaculture and [elsewhere] municipal water control facilities

Spread by: fish hatcheries; recreational watercraft and trailers; anglers and hunters; sand and gravel mining, dredging; commercial shipping; pets, fish and wildlife; natural resource management activities.

Response work group formed in November 09, consisting of FW state and federal; general administration; DoE; DNR; Olympia; Invasive Species Council

Response: 1)  close Capitol Lake; 2) lake level lowered in response to freezing temperatures (90% mortality rate); 3) saltwater back flush (12% mortality rate, negative but temporary impact on resident benthic invertebrates)

For more information: http://www.invasivespecies.wa.gov

A couple questions and answers:

What would the impact of a estuary conversion have on the New Zealand mud snail?

A littl irrelevant, because we don’t have the time.

Could opening up the lake to an estuary lead to a great spread?

Possibly.