The New Zealand mud snail (Potamopyrgus antipodarum) is an invasive species that became established in the western United States since the 1980s. In suitable habitat, especially in geothermal streams with high primary production, it can form dense colonies on aquatic vegetation and rocks along streambeds, crowding out insect communities—a primary food for immature trout and other native species. New Zealand mud snails consume a large amount of algae, which is a primary food for native aquatic invertebrates. Its overall impact on algae is likely to affect entire stream food webs. With its protective shell, the mud snail provides little if any nutrition as prey and may pass through a fish alive. Scarcely a quarter-inch long, mud snails may cling to boats, waders, and other fishing gear by which they are inadvertently transferred to another watershed. Because the species can reproduce asexually, a single mud snail is all that is required to establish a new colony. PopulationFirst detected in the park in 1994, New Zealand mud snails are now in all of the major watersheds. Although the mud snail is abundant in several streams, it remains absent or uncommon in other Greater Yellowstone streams, suggesting that its upstream population density and distribution is limited by colder temperatures, low productivity, and unstable substrates associated with spring runoff. Impacts of Mud SnailsOnce mud snail colonies become established in a stream, removing them without disrupting native invertebrate populations is not feasible with any known method. Mud snail research in Greater Yellowstone aims to determine the species’ impacts on other aquatic organisms and stream ecology. A study of the Gibbon and Madison rivers found that 25–50% of the macroinvertebrates were mud snails, and the areas they occupied had fewer native mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies—insects important in the diet of salmonids and several bird species. Whirling Disease
Whirling disease can infect some trout and salmon. Red-rimmed Melania
Red-rimmed melania, a small snail, was discovered in a warm swimming area. Lake Trout
Lake trout prey on Yellowstone cutthroat trout. Rainbow Trout
Rainbow trout are native to North America in waters which drain to the Pacific Ocean from northern Mexico to Alaska. Eastern Brook Trout
Eastern brook trout was the first nonnative species introduced in Yellowstone—stocked in the (then fishless) Firehole River in 1889. Brown Trout
The brown trout is the only nonnative fish species in Yellowstone that is not native to North America. Lake Chub
Native to the Missouri and Yellowstone river drainages in Montana and Wyoming, the lake chub is not native to Yellowstone National Park. Catch a Fish
Be a responsible angler and understand the regulations before you come. Clean, Drain, and Dry
Protect park waters by preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species. Aquatic Invasive Species
Aquatic invasive species can disrupt ecological processes. Fisheries Management
Learn how the Native Fish Conservation Program works to preserve Yellowstone Lake cutthroat trout and to restore fluvial trout populations. Native Fish Species
Native fish underpin natural food webs and have great local economic significance. Nonnative Fish
Lake trout and other invasive species pose many threats to Yellowstone's aquatic ecosystem. |
Last updated: February 29, 2024