Aquatic Invasive Species Can Still Spread During Winter

The risk of spreading invasive aquatic species between waterbodies doesn’t go away when our lakes ice over. Invasive aquatic plants, like variable-leaf milfoil and curly-leaf pondweed, remain viable throughout the winter. While most plants go dormant in the winter, curly-leaf pondweed starts growing from its turions (i.e. vegetative propagules)  in the fall, and continues growing through the ice and snow all winter. Likewise, entire milfoil plants remain hardy under the ice as shown in this image taken on Belgrade Stream earlier this winter!

Tips to Protect Our Lakes This Winter:

When you are ice fishing, please be mindful of the continuous risk of spreading these invasive aquatic species.

• Inspect fishing rods and any gear that will have contact with the water at the beginning and end of the day.
• We recommend bringing a plastic bag to contain any plant material you may find, and disposing of it away from any body of water.

Did you know?

Northern Pike are an invasive fish species that are present in the Belgrade Lakes watershed and a big competitor to our native fish populations. Maine does not have size or daily bag limits on pike and anglers are encouraged to harvest any fish caught to reduce the population. However, please be mindful against leaving them out on the ice for eagles or any bird of prey as artificially feeding wildlife can disrupt their essential behavior patterns.

When harvesting and consuming fish, be aware of the mercury guidelines and special PFAS guidelines per lake.