The Alexandria Chain of Lakes is one of Minnesota’s premiere summer recreation destinations. It has one of Minnesota’s most popular state parks (Carlos State Park), and its premiere lake resort (Arrowwood). The Minnesota DNR, sporting groups, and lake associations help maintain fish populations. The chain is a premiere walleye and bass fishing resource.
Local tourism encourages fishing tournaments that are approved and permitted by the county government. Fishermen throughout the Midwest come to the chain to fish. Thousands of boats enter the lakes at many of its public access locations. Invasive species, including the newly found zebra mussel, are an example of problems that may naturally arise because of the boat visitors to the chain.
Zebra mussels are not new to the Midwest. Many lakes in Wisconsin and Minnesota have this species, including Minnesota’s premiere walleye fishing lake, Millacs. Once a body of water has been infested, little can be done to stop the spread of the microscopic creatures that grow to not much larger than a fingernail in size as adults.
As responsible lake stewards, visitors to the lake should be reminded that zebra mussels have been found on the chain, and when leaving the water, the boats, live-wells and equipment should all be cleaned to prevent the spread of zebra mussels to other lakes.
Unfortunately, the spread of zebra mussels within a water system is likely. Whether moved by boats, currents, wave action, or other in-water migration, once the mussels have invaded a body of water, the likelihood is that they will spread to any attached water body. This holds true for the chain.
So what do they do to a lake? Zebra mussels filter water, and in turn, clean it. This water filtering removes natural bacteria and algae making the water clearer. This may result in rapid weed growth, more than what otherwise may be expected without the zebra mussels.
Zebra mussels can overwhelm the habitat, forcing out the natural born lake clams. The mussels can also be a nuisance. They can attach to docks, boats and other equipment that sits in the water. Though many lakes in Minnesota have zebra mussels, avoiding their spread is the challenge.