The recent concern expressed by county officials and the Board of Supervisors toward the possible infestation of Clear Lake by quagga and zebra mussels is well-founded. If the mussels ever do get into the lake, it would change the character of Clear Lake forever.
Not only would there be fewer bass and other gamefish, but the water would become clearer, resulting in massive weed growth (the reason is that the mussels would consume all the plankton other fish depend upon when they”re young).
Nonnative species of fish in Clear Lake are nothing new. In fact, most of the fish that now swim in the lake are foreigners. Largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, sunfish and catfish are all popular gamefish that are not even native to the West Coast, much less Clear Lake. They all were stocked in the lake back in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
There are also carp, brown goldfish, threadfin shad, mosquitofish and silverside minnows. None of these fish are natives.
Clear Lake originally had approximately 15 species of native fishes. A few still survive and are abundant. However, many have become extinct or are considered rare. Others are rarely seen but still survive in the lake and its tributaries.
The Pacific lamprey eel once spawned in Clear Lake”s tributaries. They migrated up the Sacramento River from the ocean, and then up Cache Creek to Clear Lake. The river lamprey and the Western brook lamprey were once common in Clear Lake but are now gone. However, it”s thought the lake still has a small population of Western brook eel in Kelsey Creek.
The thicktail chub was once common in Clear Lake but is now extinct. The same applies to the Clear Lake splittail. At one time it was the most abundant fish in the lake, but the last was seen in the 1970s.
One of the most common native fish in Clear Lake is the hitch although this fish could be in trouble and there have been steps taken by a local organization called the “Hitch Council” to save it. The Clear Lake hitch is a subspecies of the Central Valley hitch and is found only in Clear Lake.
The Sacramento blackfish is also common in Clear Lake and it”s even harvested commercially. The fish are sold live in the Asian markets in San Francisco.
Another native fish that appears to be doing well in Clear Lake is the Clear Lake tule perch. This fish is unique in that it bears its young live. In other words, the young are developed inside the mother.
The Sacramento perch is also found in Clear Lake. It is the only native member of the sunfish family found in the West. At one time the fish was abundant in Clear Lake, but is now rarely seen.
The prickly sculpin is another native fish that is abundant in Clear Lake but rarely seen. It often buries itself in the mud. They are a common food fish for the bass and catfish.
Scientists say the reason many of the native fish have become extinct or rare is because they couldn”t compete with the other species of fish that were introduced into the lake.
Many of the introduced fish such as bass, crappie and catfish, have been welcomed by sport fishermen, while others are considered a pest. For example, carp are in the lake by the thousands even though most fishermen hate the fish.
Threadfin shad were illegally introduced into the lake by fishermen who thought the fish would improve the bass fishing by supplying bass with a good food source. While it”s true the bass do eat the shad, most fishery biologists say shad are nothing but bad news for a lake because they eat the plankton that other fish require. In fact, shad and silverside minnows are blamed for the decline in the native species of fish by some biologists.
Clear Lake, with its waters rich in plankton and other types of food, is the ideal home for many invasive species of aquatic life. The problem is that many of these species squeeze out the native fish.
Unfortunately, sooner or later the zebra and quagga mussels will find their way into Clear Lake. The big question is how soon will a boat with the mussel larva stuck to its hull be launched into the lake. That will start a chain reaction that will be impossible to control.
