The round goby, a non-native fish from the Black and Caspian seas, was first discovered in North American waters in 1990 and has since spread to all of the Great Lakes. The goby is now moving inland toward the Mississippi River basin via the Illinois Waterway System. Surveillance efforts conducted by an interagency group in June and July found the round goby almost 30 miles inland from Calumet Harbor of Lake Michigan at the confluence of the Calumet Sag Channel and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.
The exotic round goby is a bottom-feeding species known for its aggressive feeding and defensive behavior. Despite its relatively small size, commonly ranging from 3 to 6 inches in length, it has a rapid reproduction rate and aggressive feeding behavior that threatens populations of native fish. Pam Thiel, project leader for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services La Crosse Fishery Resources Office and coordinator of the monitoring, said, The round goby has received national attention since increasing populations could seriously impact sportfishing industries in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. This and all other invasive species invasive species
An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.
Learn more about invasive species have the potential to upset the natural balance of the ecosystem and cause long-term damage.
The Illinois Waterway System in the Chicago area consists of several interconnecting channels and natural rivers that provide a direct link between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basins. These huge basins encompass portions of 30 states and two provinces. Therefore, the potential economic and environmental impact of invasive species, such as round goby, could be widespread and significant.
The Illinois Waterway System currently provides an easy avenue for nonindigenous species to travel in either direction between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basins. The zebra mussel is one of the most recent invaders to spread from the Great Lakes into the Illinois and Mississippi rivers via this pathway, and the round goby is currently poised to follow the same route. Other nonindigenous species, like grass and bighead carp, are traveling in the opposite direction and have established breeding populations in the Illinois and Mississippi rivers, and may soon disperse into the Great Lakes.
In order to prevent and slow gobies and other nonidigenous species from spreading throughout these basins, the Nonindigenous Species Act of 1996 authorized the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to study and determine the feasibility of an aquatic nuisance species dispersal barrier. The study found that a full-water column electrical barrier would be the most economically and environmentally effective deterrent. This strategy has been successfully tested in both the laboratory and in the field. According to Dave Handwerk, project engineer for the Corps of Engineers, Construction of the barrier, located in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal near Romeoville, Illinois, is slated for completion in June 2000.
Mike Conlin, chief of fisheries for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, said, Since the gobies are now only about 7 miles above the barrier site, we are racing the clock to get the electrical barrier in place before the gobies move past it. The upcoming monitoring effort will alert us to the gobys present location.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish and wildlife and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprising more than 500 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries and 78 ecological services field stations.
The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://www.fws.gov/r3pao/
