Quagga

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Quagga Pic (1).JPG


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Updates

Quagga mussels continue to be a major problem in the Colorado River. Since being discovered in Lake Mead in the Lower Colorado River in early 2007, the quagga mussels have spread rapidly in the watershed. Young mussels float in the water column and get carried by the water currents downstream, while adults attach themselves to the bottoms of boats and can be transported miles away. Quagga mussels, natives of Europe and Asia discovered in the Great Lakes region in the late 1980s, can grow to about 1.5 inches and are clogging water lines that are used to cool the 17 massive hydropower turbines at Hoover Dam. They have caused similar problems at the downstream Davis Dam in Lake Mohave and Parker Dam in Lake Havasu, both of which provide electricity for thousands of people in Arizona and California. Reclamation, which operates the Hoover, Davis and Parker dams, has employed divers with high-pressure water hoses to blow mussels out of pipelines and filter gates. But those treatments are expensive, and the results are only temporary. "Mussels have the potential to disrupt water delivery and hydropower generation functions and to create long-term economic impacts...,"

"The risk of Dreissena establishing within the CRE is low, except for the Lees Ferry tailwater reach where the risk appears high. Dreissena are unlikely to establish at high densities within the CRE or its tributaries because of high suspended sediment, high ratios of suspended inorganic:organic material, and high water velocities, all of which interfere with the ability of Dreissena to effectively filter feed. The rapids of Grand Canyon may represent a large source of mortality to larval Dreissena, which would limit their ability to disperse and colonize downstream reaches of the CRE. In contrast, conditions within the Lees Ferry tailwater generally appear suitable for Dreissena establishment, with the exception of high average water velocity." [1]


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Quagga Facts/ Trivia

What are the Currently Effective Control Methods Used for Mussels?

Methods of Control:[2] Oxygen Deprivation | Temperature Treatments | Exposure and Dessication| Ultraviolet Radiation | Manual Scraping | High-pressure Jetting | Mechanical Filtration | Passive and Barrier Filtration | Removable Substrates | Chemicals (Chlorine) or Molluscicides | Ozone | Antifouling Coatings | Electric Currents| Sonic Vibration | Natural Predators or Biological Controls| Bacteria (Pseudomonas Fluorescens)

Quagga Mussel Information

Zebra VS Quaggas:

  • Quaggas are the dominant species of the two and will displace Zebras.
  • Quaggas tolerate colder temperatures, and are more abundant at greater depths, reproduce at lower temperatures, and are more likely to grow in single layers and produce more patchy distributions.
  • Unlike Zebras, Quaggas don't necessarily need hard substates to attach and grow. They can grow on the soft, silty bottom sediments.

Quagga Mussel Archive

Rules and Laws

  • Utah law prohibits the transport of quagga mussels — dead or alive — through the state. Violators are subject to thousands of dollars in fines and up to one year in jail for a crime that is classified as a Class A misdemeanor.

The Bureau of Reclamation- Quagga web-page


  • Finding Durable Foul-Release Coatings to Control Invasive Mussel Attachment Highlighted in Bureau of Reclamation Study

LINK to Video Clip--- USBR Mussels Page


2013 SRP Quagga in Pips animation- PIC.jpg Quagga Pipe 2013-Video Clip- Courtesy of Salt River Project

Quagga Surface Tests.jpg
Quagga Surface Tests.jpg

141016 USBR Quagga Research Report-PIC.jpg Pipe Encrusted with Zebra Mussels.jpg Quagga Mussel encrusted boat motor.jpg View of Exposed Zebra Mussels.jpg Zebra and Quagga Mussels.jpg Zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha).jpg