Data for Open water dreissenid mussel control projects: lessons learned from a retrospective analysis

Abstract

Dreissenid mussels are one of the most problematic aquatic invasive species (AIS) in North America, causing significant ecological and economic impacts in waterbodies where established. To date, dreissenid mussel control efforts in open water have included physical, biological, and chemical methods. The feasibility of successfully managing or even eradicating dreissenid mussels in lakes is relatively undocumented and unstudied in freshwater management literature. Additionally, control efforts are sometimes stymied by perceptions that the impacts to nontarget species will be unacceptable. The published literature evaluating both these two aspects is limited. Here, we present information on 33 open water dreissenid mussel control projects in 23 lakes across North America. Projects were categorized as rapid response eradication (n=16), established population eradication (n=8), suppression (n=3), or research (n=6).