MATTAWAN, Mich. (WOOD) — The Michigan Department of Natural Resources says invasive red swamp crayfish were found in an outdoor pond at the Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery in Van Buren County.
The DNR says the fish were found after stocking muskellunge in Barry County’s Thornapple Lake and Lake Hudson in Lenawee County.
DNR says no need to worry after Michigan lake turns red
“Hatchery staff found the carcasses of two unusual crayfish in the collection basket of Wolf Lake Hatchery Pond 20 (where the fish were reared) after the pond was drained,” the DNR said in a news release. “Crayfish traps were quickly deployed in Pond 20 and two adjacent ponds, resulting in the capture of one live, positively identified red swamp crayfish in Pond 20.”
The DNR and the Michigan Invasive Species Program are working together to get a better understanding of the infestation at the Wolf Lake Hatchery. They have set 165 traps across the 11 earthen bottom ponds and using environmental DNA to determine the potential source of the crayfish…