Officials in Maine have issued a warning after an invasive species was found in a lake where it had not been seen previously.
What's happening?
According to WMTW, state officials are concerned after a fisherman reported catching a largemouth bass in West Musquash Lake in Washington County. Biologists from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and the Passamaquoddy Tribe used an electrofishing boat to confirm the report, finding multiple age classes, including fry, or recently hatched fish, in the lake.
Why is finding largemouth bass in this lake important?
Largemouth bass are not native to West Musquash Lake, which means the fish were artificially introduced, likely by humans who were hoping to fish them in the lake. While the lake connects to other lakes where the bass have been introduced, biologists say it's highly unlikely that they migrated upstream.
While largemouth bass are a popular target for fishermen, they are highly invasive when introduced to a new area. Because of their size and voracious appetites, they outcompete native species for food and can decimate an ecosystem, reproducing quickly and taking over the area. And because they aren't native to the ecosystem, they have no native predators in the vicinity, making their spread even tougher to stop.
That the bass were found in West Musquash Lake is particularly troubling. The 1,600-acre deep body of water supports a wide variety of fisheries, including wild landlocked salmon, wild lake trout, wild native brook trout, and rainbow smelt.
On top of that, it is one of the last remaining waters in the state with a known population of white roundfish. It is the only lake in the area that supports all these species of fish without an active stocking program. The bass's presence in the lake is a threat to all of these species, and biologists say that their presence will change the lake forever.
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What's being done about the bass?
Maine officials have wasted little time with their investigation. They checked nearby bodies of water, including Orie Lake, and did not find that the fish had spread further. Researchers believe the fish was illegally introduced to the lake by humans, and are offering a $6,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those who introduced them.
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