Didymo: A Video Diary

[KoldFusion]

I seen this 25 minute video diary of a Didymo bloom and its impact on fishing.

Pretty good video for a pretty bad invasive.
http://vimeo.com/39075187


And the return visit a year later.
http://vimeo.com/39828572

[Albertafisher]

http://vimeo.com/24841362 Here's another Didymo video. Thanks for the videos and thread!
What rivers are effected by Didymo in Alberta? Does anyone know?

[FishingForLife]

Thanks for the post! Good Videos!

I've noticed quite a bit of that garbage in The Bow. I thought it was toilet paper at first.

[Bow flyman]

Great videos. Didymo has changed the Northwest stretch of the Bow in Calgary, more than any other single factor. The whole ecosystem changes when it takes over. It provides food for mayfly and caddisfly larva, so those species increase, which benefit the trout. However, the stoneflies, which need clear, clean gravelly water, decrease in numbers as the alge blanket the entire river bottom. Overall, the net impact is negative. As mentioned, when you nymph, the stuff gets on your fly almost every cast. The ugly appearance of it on each and every rock makes fishing a river with more natural substrate appearance, like the crowsnest, much more enjoyable even if I catch nothing! I utterly hate it, because I can no longer even remember what this stretch of the Bow looked like before the invasion.

[Albertafisher]

I think what the people can gain from these videos is that we need to be more conscious about how we clean our gear. We have to make an effort to not spread this invader by allowing infected gear to touch clean, unspoiled water. The only problem is that not everyone knows about this and some ******* will probably be lazy and spread this disaster. I believe I've seen Didymo in the Athabasca in Jasper (could be wrong), and I would hate to see it spread to other water systems in the area.
Here are some tips on keeping your gear safe for the future:
1. Check: Before leaving the river, check your boat and equipment carefully and remove all obvious clumps of algae, taking care to look for hidden clumps. Leave clumps at the affected site. After leaving the area, if you find any clumps, do not wash them down the drain, but rather throw them in a garbage can. Treat your equipment as follows.

2. Clean: Any item that was in contact with water.
Non-absorbent items:

Soak and scrub all items for at least one minute in one of the following:

very hot water kept above 60 °C (hotter than most tap water), or for at least 20 minutes in hot water kept
above 45 °C (uncomfortable to touch).
a two per cent solution of bleach (200 ml and water added to make 10 litres);
a five per cent solution of salt (500 ml or two cups and water added to make 10 litres);
a five per cent solution of antiseptic hand cleaner (500 ml or two cups and water added to make 10 litres);
a five per cent solution of dishwashing liquid (500 ml or two cups and water added to make 10 litres).

Absorbent items:

Items like felt-soled waders require longer soaking times to allow thorough saturation. Leave absorbent material to soak:

at least 40 minutes in hot water kept above 45 °C;
at least 30 minutes in hot water kept above 45 °C containing a five per cent dishwashing detergent solution.


3. Dry: If equipment cannot be cleaned adequately, dry it completely and then allow it to dry for an additional 48 hours before using it in another lake or river.

When applying these decontamination methods, it is recommended that you:

Use biodegradable products.
Use phosphate-free detergents.
Do not dispose of cleaning wastes in lakes or rivers.
Use a cleaning solution recommended above that will not alter your equipment.
Follow the product manufacturer’s safety recommendations.


Freezing: Freezing any item until solid will also eliminate didymo cells.

Additional precautions must be taken for the following items.

Motor boats: Clean boats, both inside and outside, as well as mechanical parts (including propellers), various compartments and trailers with one of the above cleaning solutions. Clean boats and trailers before moving from one watercourse to another.

Kayaks, canoes and dinghies: Scrub the exterior of the craft vigorously with one of the recommended cleaning solutions for at least one minute, then fill the interior of the craft with the same solution and place all equipment, gear and clothing used in the boating activity into the boat. Immerse the equipment completely and stir the solution for at least one minute, then rinse with tap water.

ATVs / vehicles: Carefully examine vehicles to remove all clumps of algae that may be attached. Thoroughly clean the underside of vehicles, tires and parts that come into contact with the water with the cleaning solution. Leave the solution on for at least one minute. Commercial car washes with an underside spray are suitable for this purpose.

Fishing equipment: Clean all rods, reels, fishing lines, flies, tackle boxes and waders and rinse with tap water. If it is not feasible to clean fishing equipment using the suggested methods, anglers can choose to restrict the use of their equipment to a single lake or river. It is important to choose one of the cleaning methods that is effective but also the least harmful to delicate gear such as salmon flies, neoprene or other synthetic materials. The simplest solution would be to allow the equipment to dry out completely.

Waders: Anglers must pay particular attention to their waders, especially neoprene waders and waders with felt soles. Felt-soled waders are felt to be an important vector in the transmission of didymo. It is very difficult to effectively clean or dry the felt soles. Studies in New Zealand have demonstrated that didymo cells can live for up to 30 days in damp felt soles.

Pets: Wash pets for at least one minute with an animal shampoo or disinfectant. If they cannot be washed, they should be held in an area away from waterways for at least 48 hours.

Swimmers & divers: Wash yourself with soap or shampoo and dry yourself completely before entering another lake or river. Potentially contaminated clothing such as bathing suits, wet suits and gloves, must be washed with laundry detergent and dried thoroughly before being reused. Shoes, masks, fins, etc. should be scrubbed or sprayed with one of the suggested cleaning solutions for at least one minute.

[Bow flyman]

A little brief about this algaes ability to spread in our waters. It is an organism that thrives very well in cold, clear, clean, and nutrient -poor streams. Hardly good news.

[bessiedog]

Well, I've seen it establish itself in the following rivers:

Oldman below the dam... Changed the fishery huge!

It's now big time creeping up the oldman watershed. It's in Dutch.
It's moving steadily up the Castle... Changes everything from beautiful to sludge gross!
It's in the lower Crow, and it's now taking hold in the upper Crow. I've watched some of my fav holes 'grosify'.
I expect it to be in the following creeks by this year unfortunately:
- Gold
- south castle
-west castle
- lost
- racehorse

There is nothing we can do because there are simply too many nummieheads that won't take care of their gear.

You guys should have seen some of these stretches before the goo snot .

It's sad really.

[ReconWilly]

Deppressing topic but informative thread, this stuff is worse than CARP, BASS and SNAKEHEADS combined, how do you stop it?

[KoldFusion]

Originally Posted by ReconWilly

Deppressing topic but informative thread, this stuff is worse than CARP, BASS and SNAKEHEADS combined, how do you stop it?

As far as we know, you can't. The video shows how high water levels released from a dam reduced the bloom by scrubbing the river bottom, but never killed it.

It should be called River Cancer. Not Rock Snot.

Seeing this stuff in The Bow River weighs heavy on my heart. What is even worse is the thought that we sport fishermen are mostly to blame.

Right now it seems the best we can do is educate about prevention. The more the word gets out, the less watersheds it spreads to.

[Dgirl]

Originally Posted by bessiedog

There is nothing we can do because there are simply too many nummieheads that won't take care of their gear.

At the risk of sounding like a troll it may not just be laziness or stupidity but LACK OF KNOWLEDGE that keeps this thing spreading. Most of the warnings about invasive species in the water are primarily aimed at boaters. I don't have a boat. Without being on this forum I really would have had no idea what didy is aside from annoying. There's a lot to be said for appropriate marketing.

[KoldFusion]

Originally Posted by Dgirl

... Without being on this forum I really would have had no idea what didy is aside from annoying.

I would still think it was toilet paper spewed out of the poop-plant. Now I don't get the willies so much anymore when picking it off my hooks.

[silverdoctor]

Pretty incredible video to watch, amazing how one microbe can change the face of a body of water or a river.

[Daceminnow]

Originally Posted by KoldFusion

I seen this 25 minute video diary of a Didymo bloom and its impact on fishing.

Pretty good video for a pretty bad invasive.
http://vimeo.com/39075187


And the return visit a year later.
http://vimeo.com/39828572

Originally Posted by Albertafisher

http://vimeo.com/24841362 Here's another Didymo video. Thanks for the videos and thread!
What rivers are effected by Didymo in Alberta? Does anyone know?

yes. thanks for the thread and the links boys. everyone should take the time to view these videos and read the post regarding prevention above. cancer is putting it mildly. bad bad stuff.

Dace