Cleaning wading equipment Alert

[Dedbeet bluz]

NZMS Sanitizing Update:
These Mudsnails are now in all 10 western states.

Many of us have been using the wrong Formula 409 product for killing New Zealand Mudsnails attached to our wading equipment.

“COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS FORMULA 409 CLEANER DEGREASER DISINFECTANT”

The above 409 product is the only one that was used in the California Department of Fish and Game field test report released in 2005.  This product will not be found in grocery stores as it is a commercial product but it can be found in Home Depot and Lowe’s, Office Max and Office Depot. Unfortunately, the manufacturer has recently discontinued this product but it is still available in places.  The only other product that has the same disinfectant in it is:

 “Formula 409 All Purpose Cleaner Antibacterial Kitchen Lemon Fresh.”  - Available in many places but in small bottle sizes only

Key words to look for = Disinfectant or Antibacterial

Please make sure you are using the correct products, as other 409 products are not killing the snails though they do aid in washing them off your equipment. Other Manufacturer’s products with disinfectants have not been test or failed test for either not killing the snails or for damaging wading equipment.

Water based solutions with Copper Sulfate and Sparquat 256 are two solutions proven to be more effective than formula 409 solutions; Availability of these products is some what limited.
see website below.

Ask your local tackle shop to start carrying some of these products.  It is in their best interest to help maintain the quality of our fisheries.

For more information about known sources for all the products, pictures of the correct product, detailed sanitizing protocols, and New Zealand Mudsnail information see this web page.

http://www.westdenvertu.org/snails.htm

Always cleanse your wading gear before moving from one body of water to another body of water. No one will know a location is infested until long after the snails are well established.

[TimberlineArcher]

I think this needs to be made a sticky with the words NEW ZEALAND MUDSNAIL ALERT  cause they are a big problem.  I know they have been found in Elevenmile canyon, so please help us keep these unwanted creatures out of colorado's streams

[dryfly09]

Yeah i agree cleaning you gear is so very important.

[ePiC]

The DOW pretty much said they dont think there is much they can do to contain these, in every state they are found they slowly spread, it could be from alot of things too.  Boats, waders, boots, fish, birds, ect.  They also said the snails prefer warmer water so they may not spread as fast or as well here.

[Dedbeet bluz]

The DOW pretty much said they dont think there is much they can do to contain these, in every state they are found they slowly spread, it could be from alot of things too.  Boats, waders, boots, fish, birds, ect.  They also said the snails prefer warmer water so they may not spread as fast or as well here.

They can not do much except post signs and educate the public.  Niether can we as one individual do much but if we all clean our waders we have a change to at least delay their progress.  The other states did not have the benefit of knowing much about the snails when the snails got a foot hold in the other states.  We have a slight edge there.  In the DOW management plan they state that they think it is possible to delay their progress through public education and  the public taking action.   

The waters that the snails are going to find the most hospitable are all the tail waters.  Our mountain streams may be colder but I doubt that the tails waters are a lot colder that Places like Idaho and Montana.

The majority of the rivers that are infested in California are the rivers that are open and heavily fished in the Winter.  Not much boating that time of year.  It could be that the same water fowl at one river only move to other rivers frequented by fisherman in the winter time but I doubt it; through out the whole year.

The testing of chemicals for killing snails and not damaging waders was only published last year.  It was the first scientific study ever done.  We did not know that there was a "special" 409 we needed to use. I have not found anyone at our TU chapter was even aware that there was more than one 409 product.  It appears from other forums that there are a lot of people that were not aware.

There is still a lot unkown about the snails but it appears that it is  probably pretty much up to us fisherman how fast they spread to other waters.

ePiC, what are is one to do?  Throw their hands in the air and say I am defeated or fight to keep the quality of our favorite fisheries as long as possible?

[ePiC]

Hey hey dont get me wrong, I was not saying who cares they are going to cover the planet anyways so dont do anything about it.  I brought up at the DOW round table this Alert and alot of guys hadnt heard this there either, some had. 

After visiting 11mile canyon I personally wash my waders (hadnt been using the right version of 409, but will be now)  leave them to dry and dont use them again for atleast 7 days.  Since I have also read they can live upto 7 days out of water.  This is my 11mile Canyon ritual, if fishing other lakes/rivers I just wash them and let them dry, snails are not the only invasive organisms that boats and waders can pickup. 

[TimberlineArcher]

probably another alternative to try is freezing your waders overnight, tahts all you have to do.  not damaging to your waders either... and considering a couple times this year I left my boots in the back of my truck in a few days fishing overnight... I accomplished killing the snails as a result  putting on frozen boots sucks though...

[ePiC]

Yes, they said freezing your waders will also kill the mud snail, but for me this isnt an option... "baby I'm going to put my waders in the freezer tonight"  "THATS WHAT YOU THINK!"   

actually there isnt enough room in my freezer.

[Dedbeet bluz]

Hey hey dont get me wrong, I was not saying who cares they are going to cover the planet anyways so dont do anything about it.  I brought up at the DOW round table this Alert and alot of guys hadnt heard this there either, some had. 

After visiting 11mile canyon I personally wash my waders (hadnt been using the right version of 409, but will be now)  leave them to dry and dont use them again for atleast 7 days.  Since I have also read they can live upto 7 days out of water.  This is my 11mile Canyon ritual, if fishing other lakes/rivers I just wash them and let them dry, snails are not the only invasive organisms that boats and waders can pickup. 

ePiC,
I figured that was the case but one could interpret that your opinion was that there is no sense to clean.  I am glad you clarified your thoughts.

I urge you to rethink about the importance of dipping your waders after every trip since the idea is not to spread the snails to any where else and no one is going to know that another body of water is infested until long after it is infested.

I presume that you read the part about spraying Formula 409 Antibacterial / Disinfectant is not adequate.  You have to dunk them in the solution.  The solution can be used over and over. (You might find a copper sulfate solution to be more economical and more effective option for you). A convenient way to do that is to go a restuarant and ask for their large empty plastic food buckets and the lids. Most food establishments are glad to get rid of them as it is a pain for them to dispose of.  A friend of mine that repairs restuarant refrigeration equipment recently started collecting them and then handing them out to guys and gals at our TU meeting. He collected 10 in a matter of a few days.

[Dedbeet bluz]

probably another alternative to try is freezing your waders overnight, tahts all you have to do.  not damaging to your waders either... and considering a couple times this year I left my boots in the back of my truck in a few days fishing overnight... I accomplished killing the snails as a result  putting on frozen boots sucks though...

I had heard a complaint from someone who had frozen their equipment and then folded it while it was frozen.  the water that was soaked into the wader/boot material had frozen and cracked the wader material when they folded or bent the material.  I presume they had frozen their boots still sopping wet.  When I lived in Crested Butte my waders and boots would routinely be frozen over night.  I would just throw them into the vehicle and by the time I got to the water they were thawed out.  Never gave it much thought one way or the other.

[daedalus]

The DOW pretty much said they dont think there is much they can do to contain these, in every state they are found they slowly spread, it could be from alot of things too.  Boats, waders, boots, fish, birds, ect.  They also said the snails prefer warmer water so they may not spread as fast or as well here.

what effect have these had in the other states?  I have seen some reports about introducing parasites to control them...what is the prognosis for the west over the next decade or two?

[ePiC]

The DOW pretty much said they dont think there is much they can do to contain these, in every state they are found they slowly spread, it could be from alot of things too.  Boats, waders, boots, fish, birds, ect.  They also said the snails prefer warmer water so they may not spread as fast or as well here.

what effect have these had in the other states?  I have seen some reports about introducing parasites to control them...what is the prognosis for the west over the next decade or two?

As far as I know the only impact they will have on the fishery is on the insect life since they compete for the same habitat.  But in waters where the snails have taken hold there is still healthy fishing.

[Dedbeet bluz]

The snails crowd out the inverterbrate organisms (scuds, nymphs)  and can become over 90% of the food for fish.  A labratory research study has shown that trout have lost 0.2% of their body weight per month when their diet consisted  completely of mudsnails but when fed scuds the fish gained 1.0% body weight per day.  During part of this study 914 snail shells were recovered from the fish after passing completely through the digestive track. 42% were dead, 43% were alive and 15% empty.  I presume that means that only 15% were digested for food and the fish will help transport live snails up and down the river.

Fisherman have complained that  the fish are smaller and few in river sections heavily infested with the mudsnails.  But I have not run across any data proving that one way or the other.  There may not be any data. 

To what extent that is going to happen here is unknown.

If we all start adhering to the cleaning protocols we have a chance of delaying these impacts.

There is a parasite in New Zealand that steralizes the snails so it helps keep populations in check there.  Around the world bad consequences have resulted numerous times when foreign control species have been introduced to control foreign invasive species.  Thus there will be many years of study before anything like that happens.  But it is more likely it will not happen.   There are studies being conducted with US organisms but any positive results will be years away, also. 

[Dedbeet bluz]

From the California Department of Fish and Game Website:
first discovered in California waters in 2000

"To date, there has been little research on the potential impacts of New Zealand mudsnails on other aquatic resources. Impacts could be significant if nothing is done to control its spread. If the snails become very dense and comprise a large percentage of the macroinvertebrate biomass, impacts can be substantial. They can reduce food resources and populations of other macroinvertebrates, particularly mayflies, caddisflies and chironomids. They can also reduce whole-stream algal production. There is very little information New Zealand mudsnail as a food resource for fish, but it does not appear as though they are the preferred food of trout."  ..... but remember that only 15% of the snails get digested.

[FishDr]

Here is a website that has a lot of good information (and synopses of most of the NZMS research to date).  You can even create maps of NZMS distribution for the western US.

http://www.esg.montana.edu/aim/mollusca/nzms/index.html