The Great Lakes fishery is facing a significant crisis that could have far-reaching consequences for both the environment and economy of Michigan and Ontario, due to the potential of an invasive species to spiral out of control.
The recent wave of government layoffs and budget cuts under the Trump administration has led to a severe blow to conservation programs aimed at controlling sea lampreys, a parasitic fish that is native to the Atlantic Ocean.
The cuts come amid a larger federal government downsizing effort, which has led thousands of workers across several agencies to lose their jobs.
Experts warn that without proper mitigation efforts, the sea lamprey population could explode, which could devastate the region’s $7 billion fishing industry.
Sea lampreys, which resemble eels but are not related, are parasitic creatures that attach to fish with their oral sucking disks filled with sharp, horn-shaped teeth and a razor-sharp rasping tongue.
Once attached, sea lampreys feed on the fish’s body fluids by secreting an enzyme that prevents blood from clotting, similar to how a leech feeds off a host.
Over a 12 to 18-month feeding period, a single sea lamprey is capable of killing up to 40 pounds of fish.
The bloodsucking predators pose a significant threat to the native fish populations in the Great Lakes, including lake trout, brown trout, lake sturgeon, lake whitefish, ciscoes, burbot, walleye, catfish, and Pacific salmonids including Chinook and coho salmon and rainbow trout/steelhead.
For decades, the Great Lakes Fishery Commission has led a program to control sea lamprey populations using lampricide, a pesticide that kills larval sea lampreys.
However, the program is now at risk due to mass firings of U.S. federal workers, including within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Forest Service.
Representatives for the commission visited Washington, D.C. on Wednesday to urge lawmakers to intervene in an effort to keep surging lamprey populations at bay.
The commission, which oversees the species’ control efforts in both the U.S. and Canada, was created in the 195os following the catastrophic effects of the species on local fish populations.
The layoffs have also left critical positions unfilled, including seasonal workers who are hired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and douse Great Lakes rivers with lampricide from April to October.
Roughly eight to nine million lampreys are killed every year, and skipping one treatment season could have disastrous impacts on native species, according to experts. Approximately 4.5 million female lampreys would be allowed to survive, laying a combined total of 450 billion eggs.
Experts say Lake Erie, which boasts more fish than any of the other Great Lakes, could be significantly affected by the program cuts.
