June 30, 2022 |
This is a big boating weekend. Wyoming Game and Fish is asking boaters to take special care to protect waterways from invasive species.
Game and Fish inspection stations report that they are catching an increased number of boats harboring invasive aquatic animals and plants. Close to four months into the 2022 boating season, Wyoming Game and Fish Department has stopped 10 boats with mussels attached, one with a live brook stickleback mixed with live-caught bait and one with curly pondweed.
Officials with Wyoming Game and Fish say the numbers are concerning and that boaters play a big role in keeping state waterways safe.
The invasive species have been detected on incoming boats as well as local watercraft moving between waters. Wyoming is one of the only states that has avoided an infestation of invasive mussels.
The defense against the destructive species starts with boaters stopping at watercraft inspection stations. There are 14 permanent Game and Fish-operated inspection locations at key places like state lines, ports of entry and high-use boat ramps — in addition to a number of certified private inspectors. This season Game and Fish has inspected over 17,000 watercraft, on pace with the previous two years.
Pictured above: Curly pondweed. Photo courtesy WGFD.
