Pool 8- Quack,quack??

Made my first trip to pool 8 on Sunday. We had no luck only 1 eye all day! Looks like lots of potential but under the conditions we couldn’t make anything happen. BUT what’s w/ all the dead ducks?? Saw about 20-30 dead ones- white bodies w/ black heads. Real curious!! Dennis

not sure, i know they have a big problem with ducks on lake onlalaska dieing. theres some kinda snail that carries a virus and when the divers eat the snails they die too. i think thats on pool 7 correct me if im wrong. the only divers i can think of that are that color are like bufflehead ringbills and scaup(bluebills) hopefully them snails didnt spread out of onalaska.

Homes,

It would be a good idea to report this to the DNR. Last year i know there was an article on this in the paper, and they wanted to know when/were people were seeing this.

Last year there were alot of dead coots floating down the river below Dresbach. I heard it was from that same snail virus. To bad to see it might be hitting the duck population too.

Make sure someones reports this to the DNR. Those were probably ringnecks, and if you saw that many, think about the ones you didn’t see. I will be over there today and will look as well.
Travis
Avery Outdoors

Or they could have been Mergansers…I’ve seen a ton of those on the river lately..

They are actaully bluebills and it is a parasite they have been getting. This has been a problem in the onalaska area for at least the last 3 years. I think it has something to do with the bluebills(scaup) eating zebra muscles around the dam that were initially introduced by the dnr. It’s odd that you don’t see this at other dams on the river,like genoa, lynxville or dbq, just seems to be at dres and tremp as far as I know. Anyone see this any other places? Pretty sickening though, to see any amount of duck just wasting away!!! You would think the DNR would do something to fix this because it is a known problem.

I was on pool 8 sunday as well. The dead ducks are upsetting, but the half alive ones really got to me. There were so many. They did open the gates from pool seven, so besides trees,tires,barrels(I’m not kidding you , I had eight, 55 gallon drums float by me at the same time!)Dead ducks and half alive ones, not to mention the litter. I had intended on keepin a couple of eater eyes, but lost my appetite with all the crap on the river.
Fishing was also slow for me, 2 eyes 16″ and 18″, and 2 small sauger 12″?.
One thing I did notice was the people were much more courteous on 8 than pool 4 has been reporting …….There are probably not quite as many fisherman on pool 8 , but by no means did I have it to myself. Just an observation …….Murf

Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
La Crosse District
555 Lester Avenue
Onalaska, WI 54650

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jim Nissen (608) 783-8401
April 5, 2005

Die-off of Waterbirds Underway on
Lake Onalaska/Upper Pool 8

Sick and dead lesser scaup, coots, and ring-necked ducks are being found on Lake Onalaska and along the main channel immediately below Lock and Dam 7 near Dresbach, Minn. Higher river flows are moving some of the birds through the dam and depositing them along the main channel in the upper part of Pool 8. Intestinal parasites, known as trematodes or flukes, are believed to be the cause of this die-off.

Trematode-caused waterfowl and coot mortality has been documented each spring and fall on Lake Onalaska since the 2002 spring migration. During the 2004 spring migration, about 1,060 sick/dead birds were found and total mortality was estimated at 2,400 to 2,700. Comparable losses occurred during the 2004 fall migration. Mortality this spring was first observed on March 28 and is expected to continue through the end of April.

Carcasses are being shipped to the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wisc. for examination.

Most trematodes have complex life cycles that require two intermediate hosts in which the parasites develop before they become infective for the definitive, final bird host. At least two different species of trematodes have been found in the digestive tracts of birds involved in past die-offs. Both species are small, ranging in size from 1 millimeter to less than 2 millimeters.

Last summer and early fall, parasitologists from the National Wildlife Health Center and Minnesota State University at Mankato, Minn. sampled snails in selected areas of Lake Onalaska. Among the findings, an exotic snail, known as the faucet snail (Bithynia

tentaculata), is now present in the river and serves as the first and second intermediate host for both species of trematodes. A portion of the snails collected and examined from various sites on Lake Onalaska were infected with the trematodes.

Based on a review of the literature, this snail appears to be a newcomer to the Upper Mississippi River. Native to Europe, faucet snails were first found in Wisconsin in the Great Lakes basin in the early 1900’s. In 1998, these snails were documented in Shawano Lake. Die-offs of coots and lesser scaup from trematodes closely parallel locations within Wisconsin where faucet snails have been found.

Depending on how heavily snail populations are infected, some birds can receive a lethal dose during less than 24 hours of feeding. Susceptible waterfowl can die 3-8 days after ingesting a lethal dose of the trematodes.

Avian predators and scavengers, such as bald eagles, crows, and gulls, have been feeding on the sick/dead birds. Mammals, such as raccoons and coyotes, may also be feeding on the carcasses. According to Wildlife Disease Specialists, there appears to be no documented threat that raptors or scavengers feeding on infected carcasses are at risk.

For more information, or to report finding sick or dead waterfowl or coots in areas other than Lake Onalaska, contact the La Crosse District Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 608/783-8405.

The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is the most visited refuge in the United States. The refuge extends 261 miles along the Upper Mississippi River from Wabasha, Minn. to Rock Island, Ill., protecting and preserving habitat for migratory birds, fish, and a variety of other wildlife. This 240,000 acre refuge was established in 1924.