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August 2007

What a Party! Genoa Hatchery Celebrates 75th Anniversary with a River Celebration

Keynote speaker Robyn Thorson (USFWS photo)

Over 600 people from 16 different states and 2 foreign countries joined the Genoa National Fish Hatchery in celebrating its 75th anniversary on August 8th, 2007. Attendees were treated to a wide variety of environmental education and interactive events that included role-playing historical speakers that interpreted events of importance that took place in the Upper Mississippi River Region.

Presentations on the pearl button industry, Native American civilizations that used the River, the last battle of the Blackhawk War, which happened just south of the hatchery, and Ding Darling, Iowa native and conservationist, well known for being the father of the Federal Duck Stamp, were scheduled throughout the day. Skip navigation links

Also included in the events were displays showing the work of our fellow River partners such as the Corps of Engineers, The National Wildlife Refuge System's Upper Mississippi River stations, USGS's Upper Midwest Science Center, and Dairyland Power Cooperative. Many thanks are to be given to Dairyland Power for helping to sponsor the event, and to our local Friends Groups for supplying time, talent and resources as well.

The event also focused on mentoring tomorrow's conservation stewards, our children. Kids' events included a Junior Duck Stamp competition, a kids' fishing tank (for some hands-on rainbow trout catching fun!), coloring contests, a fishing game and a touch tank filled with river critters such as bullfrogs, freshwater mussels, turtles, and minnows. A special postmark was also designed by a local artist for the day, and she was honored at the event.

Volunteers serving fish during the 75th celebration

Genoa alumni and current staff celebrate 75 years of conservation

The event was topped off with speakers important both on a Regional and National scale. Robyn Thorson, Region 3 Regional Director, was the keynote speaker, with Joe Moran representing the National Fisheries Office. Karrie Jackelen spoke representing Congressman Kind and his district, and presented the hatchery with a Congressional Declaration honoring the hatchery on "its day." To top it all off, past employees and their families were honored at the podium with some hatchery outreach items, and a historical pictorial put together by Dave Radloff of the Regional Fisheries staff.

Local river folk musicians Roger and Mandy LaBarge and our Friends Group's own jazz musicians Chuck and Regina Chihak were also on hand to entertain us all with some fine music. Thanks to all the many planners and staff for their assistance in making this day special. In an effort to help future generations of hatchery employees, the mementos from the day are being placed in a special time capsule for future generations to plan for their 150th anniversary!

– Doug Aloisi

The US Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Geological Survey Team up to Combat Zebra Mussels

Native freshwater mussels have been under attack for the last 20 years by invasive zebra mussels. Since they were first reported in the Great Lakes in 1985, zebra mussels have marched across all the Great Lakes, down the Illinois River and into the Mississippi River where unsuspecting barges first transported them into the Upper Mississippi River System.

The relentless bombardment of zebra mussels decimated native mussel populations, including the federally-endangered Higgins eye pearlymussel (Higgins eye), causing a rallying of the troops by bringing together the Mussel Coordination Team (MCT), a team of multiple federal and state agencies dedicated to countering the attacks of zebra mussels. It was the formation of the MCT that brought Genoa National Fish Hatchery (NFH) into the war against zebra mussels.

Genoa NFH is the first federal fish hatchery in modern times to successfully culture native mussels. Techniques used by the Genoa NFH and the MCT to culture Higgins eye have since been used to culture five additional mussel species. One of these species is the black sandshell, which Genoa NFH has been producing for the past four years. Black sandshells have been held and grown in cages in Dubuque Iowa's Ice Harbor for the past two years. Nearly 150 of these mussels were recently transferred to the US Geological Survey's Upper Midwest Environmental Science Center where they will be used to test the effects of a chemical that is reportedly toxic to zebra mussels, but harmless to native mussels.

Black sandshell are just one of the many species cultured at Genoa NFH

Finding a chemical that will only be toxic to zebra mussels will allow managing agencies to start all-out chemical warfare on zebra mussels. This project started as a science support proposal, a process where resources from the two sister agencies of the Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Geological Survey are pooled to research and solve specific resource related questions.

– Tony Brady

The Corps of Engineers and Genoa NFH Promote Kids in Nature

The Corps of Engineers Blackhawk Park facility holds an annual Kids' Fishing Day in August that typically draws participants from the 3 state (Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) area. The Genoa National Fish Hatchery assisted our neighbors on the River by staffing an outreach display during the educational portion of the event.

Jenny Walker tells kids about the activities of Genoa NFH

Jenny Walker shows off one of the lake sturgeon that was raised at Genoa NFH

The hatchery brought along an aquarium and displays featuring Upper Mississippi River fish and mussels for over 75 kids and their parents to see, touch, and marvel over. Special hits were the live sturgeon, freshwater mussels, and channel catfish. Kids were broken into five separate groups which were each given a 15 minute presentation on fish identification, fish habitat requirements, and fish behavior. They were then turned loose to try their luck in the Mighty Mississippi River. This cooperative effort is a unique opportunity to partner with a federal agency to promote kid activities in nature and provide a conservation message to the next generation of natural resource stewards.

– Tony Brady

New Host Fish Discovered for the Federal Candidate Sheepnose Mussel

The sheepnose mussel Plethobasus cyphyus historically occurred in 77 streams and rivers across the country. Today, populations of sheepnose are known to occur in only 26 of these water bodies. Of these 26 locations, only four are believed to have reproducing populations of sheepnose.

Because of these dire statistics, the sheepnose was listed as a candidate species on the Federal Endangered Species List in May of 2004. In order for restoration or eventual recovery of this species, a better understanding of its life history is needed. Sheepnose, like most other mussel species, requires a fish host to complete its life cycle. The mussel's larvae, called glochidia, attach to the gill and fins of fish, where they undergo a metamorphosis into free-living animals that leave the fish to live independently on the bottoms of streams and rivers.

The sheepnose mussel is a federal candidate for listing under the Endanger Species Act

Sheepnose transformer as seen under a microscope

Until 2005 the only reported host for sheepnose came from a 1914 report that found glochidia naturally attached to sauger in the wild. No confirmation of successful transformation was recorded in this early report. In 2005 Dr. Tom Watters from Ohio State University reported successful transformation of sheepnose glochidia on central stonerollers Campostoma anomalum. In July and August, Genoa National Fish Hatchery (NFH), in conjunction with Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the University of Minnesota, collected gravid sheepnose females from the Chippewa River in Wisconsin and harvested viable glochidia to test a variety of potential host fishes. At Genoa NFH, seven fish species were tested as potential hosts including suckers, darters, minnows and chubs. Of these seven species, three were confirmed to be hosts for sheepnose. As reported by Dr. Watters, stonerollers were successful at transforming sheepnose glochidia. The two new species that were confirmed as hosts were creek chubs Semotilus atromaculatus and fathead minnows Pimephales promelas.

The bonus of this discovery is that Genoa NFH raises millions of disease-free fathead minnows annually as forage for their warm and cool water fish programs. Some of these fathead minnows will be used to start a production program for sheepnose in 2008. While this is not an all-inclusive list of host for sheepnose, other species are still being tested at the University of Minnesota and all findings will be published as soon as possible.

– Tony Brady

For additional information about any accomplishment report please contact Genoa National Fish Hatchery.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service