Invasive species threaten our way of life in Minnesota. Especially aquatic invasive species that hitch a ride on our watercraft. Zebra muscles, and Eurasian milfoil are some of the more common ones that we hear about and try to prevent. Once these invasive species get into a lake, it's pretty much impossible to get rid of them. That's why it is so important to check your boat and make sure it's clean and dry before you bring it to another body of water.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is warning of another way that an invasive species can get into our waters, and it's quite a bit different. They posted a warning to their Facebook page about having crayfish boils with invasive live crayfish.

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Louisiana crayfish are also known as red swamp crayfish. They are not native to this area, but unfortunately, live crayfish could be smuggled to our state, and somehow make it into our waterways. It's illegal to import live crayfish. There are permits and regulations to import frozen crayfish.

Fortunately only one body of water in Minnesota has been affected by the crayfish. A small infestation was found in 2016 in Lake Tilde in Clay County.

These crayfish will outcompete our native species of crayfish and take over. Here's the scary part, these red swamp crayfish are "voracious eaters" of fish eggs. Hey stay away from our walleye!

You can learn more about this invasive species and others through the Minnesota DNR website. 

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