Best Practices for Aquatic Invasives

[wcosner2]

As anglers, protecting waterways and their associated resources should always be a priority. I think it is often an afterthought about the potential species we are transporting as we move from one body of water to another. I know I am guilty of fishing a few different streams in a day and doing next to nothing to ensure I am not transporting anything harmful.

What if anything do you all do to mitigate any transfer of invasive species? Are there any precautions you take if you are fishing multiple streams in one day vs. fishing multiple streams over the course of a few days or a week?

 

[silverfox]

A few things. I have a few different waders assigned to different tasks/streams/areas.

I've been fishing waters with invasives for a while (not in PA), and two of them have wash stations at the parking areas and have for years. I use those before leaving the stream, and then wash the waders/boots at home.

I'll leave waders and boots in the sun to dry/cook for a day or two in the summer after washing them.

It's dual purpose for me. 1 it cleans off invasive critters, and 2 it keeps the boots/waders clean so they last longer.

I think the biggest thing is committing to actually doing something about it and being diligent about keeping your gear clean.

I fished in Ireland a lifetime ago (for native browns) and it was during a Mad Cow outbreak (somewhat unrelated). We had to wash our shoes (everyone coming through customs did) in the airport before they'd let us out of the terminal. Fishing gear got scrubbed down/disinfected and inspected like we were prepping for surgery.

Just have to get serious about it and do something.

 

[Roofin' Trouter]

I have a few different pair of waders and wading boots and will change if I'm changing cricks. At the end of the day ,I hose my boots and waders down,let them dry in sun or beside wood stove, and then freeze them for a few hours.
I've wondered if that is enough.

 

[Fish Sticks]

I have a cheapo chest freezer and 8 hours in there does the trick.

Lol of course this is a joke(for you not PFBC) but I cannot resist.

Try not to sink hundreds of millions of dollars into infrastructure that ruins huge springs and raises millions of invasive trout each year and then try not try not fill up a truck with 10000 gallons of water and drive 100 miles up I 81 with thousands of invasive trout and try not to back that truck up to a stream with vulnerable native aquatic species and try not to out those thousands of invasive trout in buckets and make sure you don’t accidentally float stock them for miles…………….its really easy to do this whole process by accident or unknowingly so just be mindful.

 

[Fish Sticks]

Its crazy because Mudsnails are plenty harmful because they harm macros and the base of the food web but they did not even make the top 100 most damaging invasive species ranked world wide. Brown trout is ranked top 30 out of 5000. Rainbows top 100 out of 5000.

the general public has no idea how *ss backwards it is to stock a top 30 or top 100 worst AIS and tell people not to transport a, still plenty harmful, but lower ranked AIS. But the comments from fisheries scientists are……… colorful lol

GISD

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www.iucngisd.org

 

[dryflyguy]

I also carry 2 - and on lengthy trips, even 3 - sets of waders and boots.
Pretty tough to clean gear properly while I'm the road fishing and camping.

When I do get back home, I hose everything thoroughly.
On waders, that includes rolling up the gravel guards to flush underneath.
And pulling out the insoles of boots to flush them out well too
Then hanging up outside to dry thoroughly for a few days.

If I need to do a quick turnaround for a pair of boots, I'll soak them in a 5 gallon bucket of water mixed with a few ounces of bleach for an hour, for didymo
For mud snails, put them in the freezer overnight.

Trying to stop the spread of these invasives is looking more and more like a losing battle.
But I still don't want to knowingly risk spreading it from stream to stream

 

[Fish Sticks]

I also carry 2 - and on lengthy trips, even 3 - sets of waders and boots.
Pretty tough to clean gear properly while I'm the road fishing and camping.

When I do get back home, I hose everything thoroughly.
On waders, that includes rolling up the gravel guards to flush underneath.
And pulling out the insoles of boots to flush them out well too
Then hanging up outside to dry thoroughly for a few days.

If I need to do a quick turnaround for a pair of boots, I'll soak them in a 5 gallon bucket of water mixed with a few ounces of bleach for an hour, for didymo
For mud snails, put them in the freezer overnight.

Trying to stop the spread of these invasives is looking more and more like a losing battle.
But I still don't want to knowingly risk spreading it from stream to stream

The way I look at is the following.

Biocontrols are rapidly evolving gene cassettes, CRISPR, and trojan males are just the beginning. Today we feel powerless but tomorrow will have many options as simple as dumping a designer/targeted pathogen into a water way that does millions of dollars and electroshocking couldn’t. Just like the invasive themselves, like it or not these capabilities will be a reality that comes.

Slowing the spread means slowing the rate of loss of native biodiversity, i.e when these capabilities get here we will have alot more to save if people take these valuable precautions to slow down the loss.