One of the undergraduate students that I mentored this semester made these beautiful cookies which include MAZMs, zebra mussels and unionids (so talented)! Mentorship has easily been one of the most rewarding experiences of my PhD thus far❤️

The Ricciardians gather for our lab Christmas party. (Photo taken by @ecoinvasions.bsky.social) Note the secret hand sign. @tjcolvin.bsky.social @vanmierlo.bsky.social @ivanakomendic.bsky.social @emmaschubert.bsky.social @picard-m.bsky.social @briellecomartin.bsky.social @veronicagroves.bsky.social

Invasive carp threaten the Great Lakes. 🎣 The Illinois DNR & @US Army Corps of Engineers are taking action — with high-tech barriers and fish removals. Watch their story in Tomorrow’s Catch, the new digital series from AFS and CWP: contentwithpurpose.co.uk/afs/tomorrow...

An emerging aquatic invasion threat to western Canada is the golden mussel (Limnoperna fortunei), whose calcium and temperature tolerances are different from those of zebra & quagga mussels. chemainusvalleycourier.ca/2025/11/18/i...

Is Atlantic Canada at risk of zebra mussel invasion? This recent study identifies several ‘higher-risk’ areas for zebra mussel invasion that could be prioritized for future monitoring and management action. 👇 https://ow.ly/Oe3350Xw1LZ

We had a great time at the @gril-limnologie.bsky.social fall workshop! @ivanakomendic.bsky.social and Cata ran a successful workshop on macrophyte and zooplankton sampling:)

So sad to see. Unfortunately there’s no way to share Instagram posts to blue sky so heres a link: www.instagram.com/reel/DQO04KS...

Come learn about raking, quadrat, and downing box sampling techniques! Excited for all the workshops this weekend :)

72 boats with invasive species intercepted before entering Lake Tahoe, including 14 interceptions of invasive mussels: fox40.com/news/califor... Shown below is a cluster of golden mussels (Limnoperna fortunei), now established in California.

RIP #JaneGoodall - one of the modern pioneers of profound interconnections between people, animals and ecosystems. Her life was lived through science, compassion and tireless advocacy for the multiple values of nature - leaving a legacy that will endure for people and planet.

Photos have been rolling in for our Zebra Mussel Safari program and whenever I see photos like this come in, I'm grateful I don't have to count these by hand. 😂

Last week our field team investigated the effects of low water levels in the St Lawrence River. Shown left to right: @briellecomartin.bsky.social, @ivanakomendic.bsky.social & @tjcolvin.bsky.social Joining them was @ecoinvasions.bsky.social. The land on which they're standing should be under water.

💻 Data centers are spreading fast across the Great Lakes — and straining already finite water supplies. CWP Director Melissa Scanlan is featured in a new @chicagotribune article. 📰 @chicagotribune: www.chicagotribune.com/2025/09/10/g... 📑 Our ABA report: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

A great week at Lac Témiscouata for @ivanakomendic.bsky.social fieldwork investigating zebra mussel associations with different substrates & macrophytes

1/ Invasional meltdown is a popular but nebulous concept in invasion ecology. It involves multiple direct & indirect mechanisms, yet it is rarely studied beyond simple pairwise facilitations. In a new paper, we expand the concept & offer testable hypotheses: redpath-staff.mcgill.ca/ricciardi/Ri...

This surprisingly relaxing footage is from SIX MILES under the ocean – and it’s the deepest ecosystem yet discovered

Plain Pocketbook (Lampsilis cardium) with invasive Zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) attached to it #wildlife #wildlifephotography #nature #Invert #mussel #aquatics #freshwater 🌍🧪

Curious what invasive water hyacinth looks like up close? Here you go! Lovely but destructive. #MacrophyteMonday

National Invasive Species Information Center estimated cost of invasive species to global economy > $1.288 trillion over 50 years. But a new study in Nature Ecology & Evolution finds that figure to be a “substantial” underestimation of the true cost. www.thecooldown.com/green-busine...

The zebra mussel invaded the Richelieu River in the mid-1990s, despite a suboptimal calcium concentration (18 mg/L). After 25 yrs of exposure to fouling, unionid diversity & abundance have eroded to the same extent as in invaded calcium-rich habitats. See our paper: cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/...

Artificial aquatic plant experiment has successfully been set-up! In case anyone was wondering what 100+ plants and bricks look like I’ve included photos

A new R package, jumpID, distinguishes long-distance "jump" dispersal from diffusive spread in invasive species using occurrence data, and its application to the spotted lanternfly in the U.S. identified 152 such jumps from 2014–2022. 🔗 doi.org/10.3897/neob...

Interested in #microplastics and their growing significance to the science & practice of limnology? Read this article: t.co/NdbDnKxKBs

Congratulations to my lab mate @ivanakomendic.bsky.social on passing her QE! 🍻🤍 #PhDcandidate

"[Quagga mussels] are such efficient filter feeders that fewer than every two weeks the entire volume of Lake Michigan is filtered by them, resulting in clear, blue water that’s beautiful but inhospitable for many lake species." www.wpr.org/environment/...

Follow our students for posts about invasive freshwater fish, crayfish & mussels: (clockwise in photo below) Victoria @vanmierlo.bsky.social Kate @katest0rey.bsky.social Brielle @briellecomartin.bsky.social Emma @emmaschubert.bsky.social Ty @tjcolvin.bsky.social Ivana @ivanakomendic.bsky.social

Can't wait to continue my field work this summer on Macrophyte Attached Zebra Mussels (MAZM). Macrophytes, though often overlooked as a substrate, are capable of supporting dense mussel populations. Featured below: Myriophyllum spicatum (image 1) and Potamogeton robbinsii (image 2).

You heard it from our treasures first... how do YOU communicate science? Sign up for the symposium and let us know! Nos trésors vous l'ont dit en premier... comment communiquez-vous la science ? Inscrivez-vous au symposium et faites-le nous savoir ! #AFSQCS2025

Invasive quagga and zebra mussels have disrupted the food web in parts of the Grest Lakes, diverting nutrients away from planktivorous fishes, thereby "making it extremely difficult for whitefish to reach adulthood in Lake Michigan and Huron". www.michiganpublic.org/environment-...