Texas Fishing Forum

** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis **

Posted By: Debra Hengst

** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 10:52 AM

TP&W confirmed another Central Texas lake now affected after they were found on a moored boat in a marina. frown Downstream river basins that feed Lake Austin and Lady Bird Lake (could) be next in the line of fire of these monsters!

Pull those plugs, drain and wash your rigs folks and let it dry before traveling to another body of water with these invasive hitchhikers.

Debra cool
Posted By: grout-scout

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 11:40 AM

Wonder how long until they are found in Medina... maybe they can plug up the dam, so the water can't escape anymore.
Posted By: Debra Hengst

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 11:51 AM

Originally Posted By: grout-scout
Wonder how long until they are found in Medina... maybe they can plug up the dam, so the water can't escape anymore.


I'm concerned it won't be long, several of us are keeping our eyes out for them and hope for the best. I'm sure they will find their way to Amistad as well as they work their way south.

Debra cool
Posted By: crankn101

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 02:32 PM

Get ready for better fishing...
Posted By: horseplaydvm

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 03:51 PM

They will eventually be in every lake.
Posted By: crankbait745

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 04:06 PM

With all the recent flooding in the past few years and how much water they let out of lakes they will be everywhere
Posted By: ChanceHuiet

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 04:24 PM

Boats are probably the littlest means of movement for zebra muscles. Like stated the high water and amount of water moving out of lakes surely moves way more. At least that's my thoughts. Give it a few years they will be all over.
Posted By: 206champion

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 05:51 PM

I think they were spread as much from flooding as from boats also.
Posted By: ChuChu1

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 10:39 PM

Floods DO NOT cross river basins. BOATERS do.
Posted By: Jake Shannon(Skeet4Life)

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 10:56 PM

I'm still wondering what zebra muscles hurt? Besides cutting your fishinf line I have noticed zero impact to the fishing at least in the lakes I fish with them. Everyone was going nuts about them in Texoma and Ray Bob years ago. Ray Bob has cleaner water and has pumped out some amazing largemouth and even big smallies. Same with Texoma. Don't get me wrong I don't want them but I think they are hyped up to much.
Posted By: Jake Shannon(Skeet4Life)

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 10:57 PM

Pretty sure Zebra muscles wouldn't hurt Austin anymore. TPWD already killed it when they put in the grass carp
Posted By: ssmith

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/28/17 11:32 PM

the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.
Posted By: Chris B

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 12:00 AM

Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.

It's a lot easier to pass new laws and blame the boaters rather than the probable cause.
Posted By: Jake Shannon(Skeet4Life)

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 12:35 AM

Originally Posted By: Chris B
Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.

It's a lot easier to pass new laws and blame the boaters rather than the probable cause.

Bingo.
Posted By: John175☮

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 12:37 AM

Wakeboard boats.
Posted By: tmd11111

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 01:07 AM

Originally Posted By: Debra Hengst
Originally Posted By: grout-scout
Wonder how long until they are found in Medina... maybe they can plug up the dam, so the water can't escape anymore.


I'm concerned it won't be long, several of us are keeping our eyes out for them and hope for the best. I'm sure they will find their way to Amistad as well as they work their way south.

Debra cool


I was Amistad this past weekend and TPW was doing checks for them at the ramp. Has some German Shepard that supposedly could sniff them out like a drug dog.
Posted By: SC-001

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 03:48 AM

Originally Posted By: Jake Shannon(Skeet4Life)
I'm still wondering what zebra muscles hurt? Besides cutting your fishinf line I have noticed zero impact to the fishing at least in the lakes I fish with them. Everyone was going nuts about them in Texoma and Ray Bob years ago. Ray Bob has cleaner water and has pumped out some amazing largemouth and even big smallies. Same with Texoma. Don't get me wrong I don't want them but I think they are hyped up to much.
It can be argued they have made fishing better some of the first places they showed up up north, cleared the water up, submergent vegetation exploded and then the smallmouth population exploded. The reason tpwd has made them out as evil is the problems and associated maintenance cost they will cause clogging the water intakes for lakes that were built for water rather than flood control.
Posted By: grout-scout

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 05:10 AM

It's not the birds, it's the boats. Canyon lake is too far from the other contaminated lakes and Travis is too, both are big pleasure boat lakes.

Also Canyon is the first lake in the chain, no way they came from above with flood waters.
Posted By: Debra Hengst

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 11:40 AM

Originally Posted By: tmd11111
I was Amistad this past weekend and TPW was doing checks for them at the ramp. Has some German Shepard that supposedly could sniff them out like a drug dog.


Yes and her name is "Pearl" smile
https://www.nps.gov/amis/learn/nature/pearl-the-mussel-sniffing-dog.htm

Debra cool
Posted By: ChuChu1

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 12:12 PM

Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.


Please explain to me how a bird can spread zebra mussels? The larva MUST be in water their entire lives, so does a bird pick up a bucket of water to carry them in? What keeps the bird from drying out when flying for several days to get from lake to lake?
Posted By: SC-001

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 01:47 PM

How do you explain an isolated pond that goes dry in a drought a few years ago is now full of little perch and bass, seen that multiple times over the years, I have no clue how that happens but always assumed birds play a part, nature has a way...
Posted By: crankn101

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 02:01 PM

Originally Posted By: ChuChu1
Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.


Please explain to me how a bird can spread zebra mussels? The larva MUST be in water their entire lives, so does a bird pick up a bucket of water to carry them in? What keeps the bird from drying out when flying for several days to get from lake to lake?


HAHAHA!!

Its a fact a bunch of different wildlife can spread mussels, no how far they can spread them is up for debate.

Since when do you need a bucket to transport something so small you can barely see with the naked eye?
Posted By: Douglas J

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 02:34 PM

Not a huge deal, lots of drama created around the zebra mussel.


Just like fire ants, we will get used to them being around.
Posted By: ChuChu1

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 02:39 PM

Originally Posted By: crankn101
Originally Posted By: ChuChu1
Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.


Please explain to me how a bird can spread zebra mussels? The larva MUST be in water their entire lives, so does a bird pick up a bucket of water to carry them in? What keeps the bird from drying out when flying for several days to get from lake to lake?


HAHAHA!!

Its a fact a bunch of different wildlife can spread mussels, no how far they can spread them is up for debate.

Since when do you need a bucket to transport something so small you can barely see with the naked eye?
Have you ever heard of sarcasm? But please PROVE to me that a bird can fly miles and keep his feathers wet enough to keep the larva wet?
Posted By: buda13

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 02:49 PM

Seems like the lakes that have been affected so far have an initial "bloom", for lack of a better term, then they kind of go away. Texoma was awful the first year or so of the zebras showing up, any stick in the water was completely covered, you could forget about fishing the brushpiles with a jig. I haven't seen a zebra in a long time out there and the brushpiles are back to normal IMHO. I know that doesn't mean they aren't there but the Zebras certainly didn't just take over like what was initially projected.
Posted By: Douglas J

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 03:01 PM

Originally Posted By: buda13
Seems like the lakes that have been affected so far have an initial "bloom", for lack of a better term, then they kind of go away. Texoma was awful the first year or so of the zebras showing up, any stick in the water was completely covered, you could forget about fishing the brushpiles with a jig. I haven't seen a zebra in a long time out there and the brushpiles are back to normal IMHO. I know that doesn't mean they aren't there but the Zebras certainly didn't just take over like what was initially projected.


I would guess the normal to high water the past couple years has kept them thinned out, seems like when we get dropping or more "stagnant" conditions they seem to flourish.

But then again I am not a scientist or biologist and I actually think hydrilla helps our fisheries wink
Posted By: texasflycaster

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 03:09 PM

I am still mystified by the "birds" thing ... if true, then why aren't there zebra mussels in little ponds and private lakes, like Kiowa? A bird's gotta' fly, right? As per "temperatures thinning the population," I have it from a local dive shop that they may be thinned on top (kind of like my hair), but in the deep cool water? They're everywhere.
Posted By: tmd11111

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 03:28 PM

Originally Posted By: Debra Hengst
Originally Posted By: tmd11111
I was Amistad this past weekend and TPW was doing checks for them at the ramp. Has some German Shepard that supposedly could sniff them out like a drug dog.


Yes and her name is "Pearl" smile
https://www.nps.gov/amis/learn/nature/pearl-the-mussel-sniffing-dog.htm

Debra cool


Well I will admit, Pearl and her team were very courteous, polite, and professional and the inspection only took a few minutes.
Posted By: T Bird

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 04:52 PM

Zebra's first appeared in the Great lakes. I seriously doubt they made it to Texas on boats.
Posted By: grout-scout

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 05:00 PM

Originally Posted By: T Bird
Zebra's first appeared in the Great lakes. I seriously doubt they made it to Texas on boats.


So are you saying that rain from the clouds transports them? Maybe tornados? They are most likely in more lakes than we currently know and I have no clue wether they are good or bad; but the water in Canyon is already clear enough. I'd sure hate to think about these things getting into my livewells. The way my boat is made it would be very easy to transport them.


Heck they might have been transported by the basschamps/canyon lake Thursday nighters fishermen for all we know.
Posted By: BThomas

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 05:12 PM

Originally Posted By: John175 ®
Wakeboard boats.


Yuuuuup, Several years ago, A couple of boats were moved from Texoma to Ray Hubbard and they found
the mussels on the boats after they were launched.
Posted By: Chris B

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 05:37 PM

Pretty simple really. Fish eat the zebras, migrating birds eat the fish and poop happens. Zebras get moved from one waterway to another. We have Pelicans that can eat really large fish. Loons are capable of eating fairly big fish. And of course the endangered water turkeys. We already have a lake with no boat ramp 15 miles from Texoma that has them.
Posted By: catslayer

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 05:40 PM

Originally Posted By: ChuChu1
Originally Posted By: crankn101
Originally Posted By: ChuChu1
Originally Posted By: ssmith
the only way to stop the spread on zebra mussels is kill all the birds that go from lake to lake the other precautions are pretty much a waste of time.


Please explain to me how a bird can spread zebra mussels? The larva MUST be in water their entire lives, so does a bird pick up a bucket of water to carry them in? What keeps the bird from drying out when flying for several days to get from lake to lake?


HAHAHA!!

Its a fact a bunch of different wildlife can spread mussels, no how far they can spread them is up for debate.

Since when do you need a bucket to transport something so small you can barely see with the naked eye?
Have you ever heard of sarcasm? But please PROVE to me that a bird can fly miles and keep his feathers wet enough to keep the larva wet?


Prove thet cant...

As stated this is a non event. Somebody link a single paper where baitfish or predator fish had a statistically signifcant decline in relation to zebra muscle population increase. Love to read it, this is a problem for ppl, not fish
Posted By: Ted Martin

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 06:43 PM

Originally Posted By: buda13
Seems like the lakes that have been affected so far have an initial "bloom", for lack of a better term, then they kind of go away. Texoma was awful the first year or so of the zebras showing up, any stick in the water was completely covered, you could forget about fishing the brushpiles with a jig. I haven't seen a zebra in a long time out there and the brushpiles are back to normal IMHO. I know that doesn't mean they aren't there but the Zebras certainly didn't just take over like what was initially projected.


absolutely agree with this - all the hysteria around these things just didn't pan out after the first year or two.

For the record, i somehow pulled up a rock at texoma this weekend with a C-rig and it had 3 or 4 zebras attached to it, so they're still in there, but not nearly like they were a decade ago. Not sure if its the warmer temps down here or the big flathead catfish, but something is keeping them in balance after that first year of explosive growth.

Ten years later, it seems to be a total non-factor.
Posted By: ChuChu1

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 06:51 PM

Originally Posted By: catslayer


Since when do you need a bucket to transport something so small you can barely see with the naked eye?
Have you ever heard of sarcasm? But please PROVE to me that a bird can fly miles and keep his feathers wet enough to keep the larva wet? [/quote]

Prove thet cant...

As stated this is a non event. Somebody link a single paper where baitfish or predator fish had a statistically signifcant decline in relation to zebra muscle population increase. Love to read it, this is a problem for ppl, not fish [/quote]

I think you were trying to write: Prove they can't.

The lakes were not built so you could go fishing. So the effects on fishing don't matter at all. It is the damage they do to everything else and that does matter.
Posted By: John175☮

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 07:42 PM

Originally Posted By: T Bird
Zebra's first appeared in the Great lakes. I seriously doubt they made it to Texas on boats.


Big boats. Someone must have skipped the inspection and dropped their boat in the water.

"In 2006, Texas appeared to dodge a bullet when Tim Ray, an employee of a marina in Pottsboro, found zebra mussels on a boat that had been brought from Wisconsin. In 2007 Ray again found zebra mussels on a boat from the Ohio River. Both boats were decontaminated before being put into the water.

In 2008 Marty Ulmer, an employee of a Denison marina, found zebra mussels on a boat arriving from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. In 2009 Bobby Vaughn, an employee of another Denison marina, found zebra mussels on yet another boat from Wisconsin. Both boats were decontaminated prior to launching into Lake Texoma."

http://tpwd.texas.gov/newsmedia/releases/?req=20090421a
Posted By: JIM SR.

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 08:43 PM

big deal,..just keep fishing. de
Posted By: Frank the Tank

Re: ** Zebra Mussels now confirmed in Lake Travis ** - 06/29/17 09:40 PM

popcorn
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