Anglers can be vigilant to stop the spread of invasive spiny water fleas
Written By:
News Tribune Editorial Board | 8:00 am, May 14, 2021 ×
A glob of spiny water fleas that collected on fishing line. New research shows fishing line among the most likely pathways for the invasive species to gather and spread. Minnesota Sea Grant photo.
With the fishing opener Saturday, half a million Minnesota anglers will be wetting their lines, hoping to hook into everything from sunnies to walleye to northern pike.
But far too many will also catch spiny water fleas or other invasives that not only are icky (which actually may not be a technical term) but are either threatening or are already doing real harm to our lakes, rivers, and fisheries. Zebra mussels, starry stonewort, Eurasian water milfoil, Asian carp, and more have long been rampaging Minnesota’s waterways and one of our favorite recreational and relaxational pastimes.