raven4 wrote:
as a side note...anyone in banff this summer that went by Johnson Lake would have noticed the whirling disease notices..."the federal gov't has now declared the entire Bow River Watershed to be an infected area...." flyfishers now need to properly clean waders too.
My local homeriver, a blue ribbon trout stream, was invaded by “rock snot” a few years back. Truly disgusting stuff, like the Jolly Green Giant had blown his nose in the river. That river (and rivershed) sees zero motorboat traffic and it was almost certainly carried in on fly fisherman’s waders.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didymosphenia_geminataI have since become more attentive to washing my boats, boots and gear.
Recommended read on invasive species – The Death and Life of the Great Lakes (Dan Egan 2017).
That book was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and chronicles the spread of invasive species in the Great Lakes (and elsewhere), starting with canal building in the late 1800’s and the introduction of sea lampreys, alewives, zebra and quagga mussels, toxic algae and more.
Egan’s writing style is reminiscent of John McPhee, introducing history, science, characters and unforeseen consequences in a fascinating and readably way.
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Life-Great ... 0393246434