Heading to Lopez Lake? Shellfish-sniffing dogs are inspecting boats for invasive species
Shellfish-sniffing dogs will examine vessels at Lopez Lake for invasive quagga mussels ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
So-called “mussel dogs” “sniff around boats, alerting handlers to the presence of mussels and dramatically decreasing the time it takes to inspect boats,” the San Luis Obispo County Public Works Department said in a news release Tuesday.
All boats entering Lopez Lake east of Arroyo Grande will be inspected on Monday, July 3, and and the Independence Day holiday, Tuesday, July 4.
Vessels that have visited a mussel-infested lake during the past 30 days are prohibited from launching, the agency said.
The shellfish, which are native to eastern Europe, “hitch rides on boats and travel to other lakes, causing damage to a lake’s natural environment, boating and water equipment,” the county said in the release. “Once a lake is infested, it can be expensive to get rid of the mussel infestation. Preventing their spread is the best course of action.”
To prevent mussel infestations, boaters can do the following:
- Check your boat surfaces for mussels, which feel like sandpaper;
- Wash the hull of your vessel;
- Remove plant and animal material;
- Drain water from the vessel and dry all parts of the boat;
- Clean and dry all live-wells;
- Throw away trash and unused bait; and
- Empty and dry buckets and compartments.
