Zebra mussels have been found attached and inside moss balls sold as aquarium plants. There have been confirmed reports from Washington, Florida, New York and most recently, from a home aquarium in Terrace, BC. The BC Conservation Officer Service (COS) collected the contaminated moss balls yesterday, after a woman made the discovery inside the aquarium in her home and phoned the RAPP line. Conservation officers were told that the moss balls came from a Terrace pet store.
Over this weekend, the COS Aquatic Invasive Species team is notifying and inspecting plant and pet stores across BC to determine whether any other mussel-fouled moss balls made their way here.
The COS is asking the public to inspect their aquarium moss balls for any potential zebra mussels. If you think you have found a zebra mussel, please call the RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277.
The COS is working with ministry invasive species colleagues, as well as in Canada and the U.S., to help prevent any potential spread of invasive zebra mussels. To date, there has been no reported introduction of live zebra mussels in BC lakes or waterways.
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