Millions Of Tiny Invasive Shells Litter The Winter Shores Of Cayuga Lake NYS Royalty-Free Stock Photography

Zebra mussels ( Dreissena polymorpha) and quagga mussels (D. bugensis) and more litter the drained lakewater shoreline of Cayuga Lake, part of the FingerLakes chain in NewYorkState. Introduced into the New York and Great Lakes from freshwater ballast discharged from freighters originating in the Black and Caspian Sea region of eastern Europe and western Asia. They filter vast amounts of local native plankton, decreasing the food source of other species and subsequently causing a lack of clarity in the water. They attached to most surfaces such as: sand, rocks, silt, pebbles, driftwood, boats, dock piers, to depths of 50feet.