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Topic: Invasive species

Overview April 24, 2014

Invasive species

Invasive species, also known as exotics, are plants, animals, insects, and aquatic species introduced into non-native habitats. Without natural predators or threats, these introduced species then multiply.

Often,invasive species travel to non-native areas by ship, either in ballast water released into harbors or attached to the sides of boats. From there, introduced species can then spread and significantly alter ecosystems and the natural food chain as they go. Another  example of non-native species introduction is the dumping of aquarium fish into waterways.

Invasive species also put water conveyance systems at risk. Water pumps and other infrastructure can potentially shut down due to large numbers of invasive species.

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Aquafornia news May 27, 2022 Earth.com

Colorado high school is fighting to save razorback suckers

Palisade High School, a twenty minute drive from where I live in Colorado, has something unusual – a fish hatchery. When I read about this, I had to visit the school to see for myself. Razorback suckers (Xyrauchen texanus), the only fish raised at Palisade’s hatchery, once lived throughout the Colorado River Basin from Wyoming to Baja California, Mexico. As is typical of many fish native to the western US, damming of rivers, introduction of non-native sport fishes and irrigation channels have taken a toll. The critically endangered fish is still found in small and fragmented populations throughout the Colorado River Basin …

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Aquafornia news May 26, 2022 SouthTahoeNow.com

Non-motorized watercraft can still spread invasive species at Lake Tahoe

Everyone boating in Lake Tahoe already goes through a process of “Clean, Drain, Dry” protocols prior to launching to keep invasive species out of the big, beautiful lake. But what about other vessels in the lake like paddle boards, electric surfboards, kayaks, and canoes? … For pristine waters that have no invasive species, such as Echo Lakes, Angora, and Fallen Leaf lakes, even Lake Tahoe is considered a threat from the Eurasian watermilfoil, curlyleaf pondweed, and Asian clams currently found in Big Blue. 

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Aquafornia news May 24, 2022 Delta Stewardship Council

Blog: The 2022-2026 Science Action Agenda: Prioritizing integrated science

After nearly two years of a collaborative effort led by the Delta Stewardship Council’s Delta Science Program, the wait is finally over. We’re excited and proud to present the final 2022-2026 SAA for the Delta. … Scientists, managers, and those with a stake in the Delta were invited to participate in two public workshops, four online surveys, and four review periods and were engaged in various collaborative venues. The collaborative process was a critical component of this SAA and built on the success of the 2017-2021 SAA, which guided over $35 million from the Council and its partners for management-relevant research.

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Aquafornia news April 26, 2022 Arizona Republic

Feds try to slow quagga mussel spread using science and nature

For the past 15 years, federal agencies have tried to subdue growing populations of quagga mussels, an invasive species that interferes with water infrastructure and threatens ecosystems. Crews tried scrubbing the mollusks off equipment, power washing them off boats and deploying chlorine and UV lights to prevent them from settling in pipes. But the tiny mussels have not only resisted all deterrents, they’ve clogged cooling equipment, reduced water flow to hydropower and even changed the water quality, making it less suitable for native species.

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Aquafornia news April 20, 2022 Eos

Endangered rivers plagued by pollution, climate change, and outdated management

A leading U.S. environmental conservation group has released its annual list of the country’s most endangered rivers. The Colorado River tops the list, but states across the nation must address polluted, dry, and unhealthy rivers, according to the list and accompanying report published today by American Rivers.

Related article: 

  • KGET: Report by American Rivers classifies Lower Kern as one of nation’s 10 most endangered rivers
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Western Water February 25, 2022 Alastair Bland Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map Layperson's Guide to the Delta WESTERN WATER-With Delta Smelt Virtually Gone in the Wild, A "Hatch-and-Release" Program Aims to Save Them From Extinction By Alastair Bland

With Delta Smelt All But Gone in the Wild, A First-Ever “Hatch-and-Release” Effort Aims to Save Them From Extinction
Experimental releases of finger-size fish into Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta inspires hope, but also skepticism, about the smelt's future

Crew releases hatchery-raised Delta smelt into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. In the vast labyrinth of the West Coast’s largest freshwater tidal estuary, one native fish species has never been so rare. Once uncountably numerous, the Delta smelt was placed on state and federal endangered species lists in 1993, stopped appearing in most annual sampling surveys in 2016, and is now, for all practical purposes, extinct in the wild. At least, it was.

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Tour September 9, 2021 - 2:30pm - 5:30pm Nick Gray Jenn Bowles Layperson's Guide to the Delta

Bay-Delta Tour 2021
A Virtual Journey - September 9

This tour guided participants on a virtual journey deep into California’s most crucial water and ecological resource – the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The 720,000-acre network of islands and canals support the state’s two major water systems – the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project. The Delta and the connecting San Francisco Bay form the largest freshwater tidal estuary of its kind on the West coast.

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Aquapedia background May 21, 2020

Nutria

Large rodents native to South America, nutria began causing alarm along rivers and other waterways after being rediscovered in California in 2017.

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Western Water January 4, 2019 Douglas E. Beeman Douglas E. Beeman

Women Leading in Water, Colorado River Drought and Promising Solutions — Western Water Year in Review

Dear Western Water readers:

Women named in the last year to water leadership roles (clockwise, from top left): Karla Nemeth, director, California Department of Water Resources; Gloria Gray,  chair, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California; Brenda Burman, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner; Jayne Harkins,  commissioner, International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. and Mexico; Amy Haas, executive director, Upper Colorado River Commission.The growing leadership of women in water. The Colorado River’s persistent drought and efforts to sign off on a plan to avert worse shortfalls of water from the river. And in California’s Central Valley, promising solutions to vexing water resource challenges.

These were among the topics that Western Water news explored in 2018.

We’re already planning a full slate of stories for 2019. You can sign up here to be alerted when new stories are published. In the meantime, take a look at what we dove into in 2018:

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Tour June 28, 2018 - June 29, 2018 Headwaters Tour Looks at Tree Mortality, Bark Beetle Epidemic & Visits Forest Lab Stantec California Department of Water Resources Association of California Water Agencies California Forest Watershed Alliance Placer County Water Agency

Headwaters Tour 2018

Sixty percent of California’s developed water supply originates high in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Our water supply is largely dependent on the health of our Sierra forests, which are suffering from ecosystem degradation, drought, wildfires and widespread tree mortality.

Headwaters tour participants on a hike in the Sierra Nevada.

We headed into the foothills and the mountains to examine water issues that happen upstream but have dramatic impacts downstream and throughout the state. 

GEI (Tour Starting Point)
2868 Prospect Park Dr.
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670.
View map
  • Tim Quinn
  • John Andrew
  • Tom Smith
  • Dan Segan
  • Jacques Landy
  • Heather Segale
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Western Water June 1, 2018 Space Invaders Gary Pitzer

It’s Not Just Nutria — Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has 185 Invasive Species, But Tracking Them is Uneven
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Delta science panel urges greater coordination, funding of invasive species monitoring

Water hyacinth choke a channel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.For more than 100 years, invasive species have made the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta their home, disrupting the ecosystem and costing millions of dollars annually in remediation.

The latest invader is the nutria, a large rodent native to South America that causes concern because of its propensity to devour every bit of vegetation in sight and destabilize levees by burrowing into them. Wildlife officials are trapping the animal and trying to learn the extent of its infestation.

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Aquapedia background August 7, 2017 Layperson's Guide to the Delta

Estuary

Suisun Marsh, part of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary, is the largest contiguous brackish water marsh on the West Coast of North America.Estuaries are places where fresh and salt water mix, usually at the point where a river enters the ocean. They are the meeting point between riverine environments and the sea, with a combination of tides, waves, salinity, fresh water flow and sediment. The constant churning means there are elevated levels of nutrients, making estuaries highly productive natural habitats.

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Aquapedia background December 29, 2016

Quagga mussel

Quagga musselsA troublesome invasive species is the quagga mussel, a tiny freshwater mollusk that attaches itself to water utility infrastructure and reproduces at a rapid rate, causing damage to pipes and pumps.

First found in the Great Lakes in 1988 (dumped with ballast water from overseas ships), the quagga mussel along with the zebra mussel are native to the rivers and lakes of eastern Europe and western Asia, including the Black, Caspian and Azov Seas and the Dneiper River drainage of Ukraine and Ponto-Caspian Sea.  

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Aquapedia background September 1, 2016

Meadows

While less a scientific term than a colloquial one, meadows are defined by their aquatic, soil and vegetative properties.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Invasive Species Poster Set

One copy of the Space Invaders and one copy of the Unwelcome Visitors poster for a special price.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Unwelcome Visitors

This 24×36 inch poster, suitable for framing, explains how non-native invasive animals can alter the natural ecosystem, leading to the demise of native animals. “Unwelcome Visitors” features photos and information on four such species – including the zerbra mussel – and explains the environmental and economic threats posed by these species.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Space Invaders

This 24×36 inch poster, suitable for framing, explains how non-native invasive plants can alter the natural ecosystem, leading to the demise of native plants and animals. “Space Invaders” features photos and information on six non-native plants that have caused widespread problems in the Bay-Delta Estuary and elsewhere.

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Publication April 17, 2014

Layperson’s Guide to the Delta
Updated 2020

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Delta explores the competing uses and demands on California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Included in the guide are sections on the history of the Delta, its role in the state’s water system, and its many complex issues with sections on water quality, levees, salinity and agricultural drainage, fish and wildlife, and water distribution.

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Western Water Magazine September 1, 2013

Two States, One Lake: Keeping Lake Tahoe Blue
September/October 2013

This printed issue of Western Water discusses some of the issues associated with the effort to preserve and restore the clarity of Lake Tahoe.

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