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Presentation by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency on the Quagga and Zebra Mussel threat to Lake Tahoe. (Est: Time: 30 Min.)
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Lake Tahoe's pristine waters run the risk of severe ecological damage by the introduction of invasive species of aquatic plants, fish, shellfish and other organisms.
Today, Lake Tahoe and other western lakes face a real and growing threat from the quagga and zebra mussels.
Quagga mussels (Dreissena bugensis) are a small freshwater shellfish with a triangular, rounded shell. A close relative of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), both the quagga and zebra mussels can attach themselves to boats and boat trailers and travel for days out of the water. Once introduced to a new body of water with the right conditions, they can reproduce with astonishing efficiency.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has partnered with other agencies to take action before these mussels invade and devastate Lake Tahoe, its ecology and surrounding infrastructure.
Ted Thayer, a representative from Wildlife and Aquatic Invasive Species Program for the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, will be presenting a power point overview of the quagga and zebra mussels' threat and the current action in place to prevent introduction into Lake Tahoe.