A coalition of environmental professionals took to their boats recently to evaluate the extent of infestation in regional waters by some of the Midwests most notorious 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.
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The seventh annual Goby Round Up was held June 18-21, in a 100-mile stretch of the Illinois Waterway, from Blue to Spring Valley. This surveillance effort involved 13 boats and more than 40 staff members and volunteers from nine state, regional, federal and environmental entities.
The objective of this years monitoring was expanded. In addition to determining the relative abundance and downstream leading edge of the round goby, the upstream distribution of the invasive silver and bighead carp was also monitored.
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 exotic round goby is a bottom-feeding species known for its aggressive feeding and defensive behavior, and prolific reproductive rate. These traits make them a threat to native fish and a nuisance to anglers.
The goby has been moving inland from Lake Michigan toward the Mississippi River basin via the Illinois Waterway System since 1993. The farthest downstream verified specimen of a round goby, to date, is just below the Brandon Road Lock and Dam near Joliet. This collection places them about 50 miles from Calumet Harbor on Lake Michigan, 11 miles below the electrical dispersal barrier near Romeoville, and approximately 15 percent down the length of the Illinois Waterway on its way to the Mississippi River. Gobies were not found any further downstream last week, but their numbers are increasing.
Bighead and silver carp are native to large rivers of Asia, were brought to Arkansas by private fish farmers in the early 1970s, and started appearing in public waterways in the early 1980s. These species are plankton feeders, eating microscopic plants and animals, and can reach weights of over 80 pounds. They are in direct competition for food with paddlefish, bigmouth buffalo, gizzard shad, larval and juvenile fish, and mussels.
"They have become extremely abundant in stretches of the upper Mississippi and lower Illinois rivers," said Dr. John Chick of the Illinois Natural History Survey. "Silver and bighead carp, in addition to upsetting the natural balance of ecosystems, can cause problems for boaters and other recreational users because they can actually jump out of the water and into your boat."
During last years Goby Round Up, bighead carp were collected near La Salle-Peru, Illinois. This collection represented the most upstream record for the species in the Illinois River and placed them 100 miles from Lake Michigan. Since then, the Illinois DNR has recorded the species in the Marseilles and Morris area. This puts them about 25 miles below the electrical barrier and 55 miles from Lake Michigan.
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 Basin for non-native species to travel in either direction. The Mississippi River Basin is the largest in North America and the Great Lakes Basin contains 20 percent of the earths fresh water; and together these huge basins encompass portions of 30 states and two Canadian provinces. Therefore, the potential economic and environmental impact of the round goby, Asian carp, and other invasive species could be widespread and significant.
Dr. Hugh MacIsaac from the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research at the University of Windsor voiced concern by saying, "Invasive species like Asian carp and round goby have the real potential to cause long-term damage. These species are receiving attention because increasing populations could seriously impact sport and commercial fishing in the two large ecosystems of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River."
In order to prevent and slow the spread of nonindigenous aquatic species throughout the Mississippi and Great Lakes 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 barrier as a demonstration project. An interagency advisory panel was assembled and recommended a full-water column electrical barrier as the most practical first step for slowing the spread of fish between the two basins. Construction of the barrier, located in the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal near Romeoville, is completed and became operational in April 2002.
Asian carp upstream movement could be slowed by this electrical dispersal barrier. With the fate of the Great Lakes fishery at risk, there are elevated incentives to add additional components to the barrier to make it even more effective, since Asian carp have yet to be collected above the barrier. The Illinois Natural History Survey will be evaluating the effectiveness of the barrier this fall and conducting laboratory experiments on how to best tweak the electric barrier to repel Asian carp moving upstream. This prototype barrier is a short-term remedy, but other feasible, long-term alternatives need to be explored.
According to Pam Thiel, project leader for the Services La Crosse Fishery Resource Office and coordinator of the Round Up, "To stop the spread of invasive species like round goby and Asian carp, anglers should never collect them as bait and move them to another lake or river. Preventing a non-native species from becoming established in a new area is always the best approach to maintaining healthy ecosystems."
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices 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 fish and wildlife agencies.
For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes - Big Rivers Region, visit our home page at http://midwest.fws.gov">
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