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I love spending time on the water here at Chatfield State Park.
And you just caught me wrapping up cleaning, draining, and drying
all of the equipment I had on the water here.
Hi. My name's Jessie and I'm an educator with Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
One of the easiest things you can do to protect Colorado's waters and the places I love
is to clean your equipment to avoid spreading unwanted plants and animals.
While we wait for my gear to dry, let's explore Chatfield Reservoir and discover
how we can protect our waters from aquatic nuisance species.
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When you take a closer look into the water of Colorado, you see how balance is key to a health environment.
However, sometimes that balance can get out of whack when new species are introduced to an ecosystem.
Aquatic Nuisance Species can quickly disrupt this balance.
They can include plants like Eurasian watermilfoil and animals like Rusty crayfish and Asian clams.
Fish pathogens and diseases like whirling disease are other forms of aquatic nuisance species.
Aquatic nuisance species may be small but they can have a huge impact on our ecosystems, recreation, water infrastructure, and even our economy.
Two aquatic nuisance species that Colorado has worked hard to keep out of its waters are zebra mussels and quagga mussels.
Zebra and quagga mussels both come from Europe. In the late 1980s these mussels hitched a ride to the Great Lakes on anchors and in the ballast water of ships
before spreading across the United States.
Zebra and quagga mussels reproduce quickly.
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Even if only ten percent of those eggs survived, at that rate in 5 years there would be ten septillion more mussels.
Their rapid reproduction means that they can outcompete native species for space.
These mussels can also impact food chains and water quality due to their ability to filter 1 liter of water a day.
That can make the water too clean.
Sounds strange, right? How can water be too clean?
Well, as the mussels filter feed, they remove plankton the base of our aquatic food chain from the water
making less food available for Colorado's fish.
Mussel's filtering the water also effect the quality of drinking water by impacting its taste and smell
making it less appealing for people to drink.
Another adaptation these animals have are their byssal threads
that allow them to attach to many surfaces including this flip flop.
Zebra and quagga mussels can also attach themselves to boats, native mussel species, and even inside pipes.
This can impact recreation, native species, and damage structures and water distribution systems in our state
leading to costly repairs that we all pay for.
Luckily, as of 2021, Colorado's waters are completely free of these highly invasive mussels.
And it's all thanks to you. But wait, how did we do that?
By cleaning off mud, plants, and animals, draining water from boats and other equipment, and completely drying them
we stopped the spread of aquatic nuisance species keeping away any unwanted hitchhikers.
Also, Aquatic Nuisance Stamps purchased by boaters help fund Colorado Parks and Wildlife's efforts to combat aquatic nuisance species.
This includes inspecting boats which are the largest source of zebra and quagga mussel spread.
You maybe thinking, "But Jessie, I don't go boating or recreate in lakes or rivers. What can I do to help protect Colorado's waters from aquatic nuisance species?"
If you have a pet at home or in your classroom, don't let it loose outside.
Pets that are released into the wild can become invasive species.
If needed, rehome it instead of releasing it into the wild.
You can also help protect Colorado's waters by joining Colorado Parks and Wildlife's aquatic nuisance species team.
Seasonal or temporary aquatic nuisance species staff are important protectors of Colorado's waters.
From inspecting boats and conducting field surveys, monitoring for aquatic nuisance species across the state
to working in a lab, microscopically identifying potential invasive species. There are a number of opportunities for supporting this work.
We have succeeded in keeping Colorado's waters free of zebra and quagga mussels thanks to the hard work of everyday Coloradans,
like you, as well as Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff. However, there are other aquatic nuisance species in our state
and there is always the possibility that zebra or quagga mussels could sneak back in if we're less careful.
That's why now more than ever it is important to protect Colorado's waters from aquatic nuisance species.
For more information on aquatic nuisance species or careers at Colorado Parks and Wildlife, please see the links below.
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