Kim Mitchell and Mike Hoff (from Region 3 RO) inoculate largemouth bass with endangered Higgins eye larva called glochidia, as Genoa NFH's mussel biologist checks the intensity of the inoculation.

Higgins eye pearlymussels showing off their fish attracting lures.

April is a special month in the upper Midwest in many ways. Spring breaks free from the grips of winter, birds are returning from their southern vacation destinations, and Opening Day.  Most people are thinking of Major League Baseball’s opening day, but at Genoa National Fish Hatchery (NFH), April brings the opening day to the endangered Higgins eye pearlymussel inoculation season. 

The 2008 mussel season opening day was scheduled for April 21st, but was postponed until April 28th due to high river waters.  Continued flooding in the Upper Mississippi River Basin threatened to be pushed back the opening day again; but thanks to divers from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, who despite the high water levels and low water temperatures in the St. Croix River, saved the opener when they hit a home run the week before by collecting 10 female mussels. 

Eight volunteers from places like Region 3’s Regional Office’s Fisheries and Endangered Species Branch, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Exelon Energy, and a retired professor from the University of Iowa, joined Genoa NFH’s mussel biologist to field a nine person team to take on the task of inoculating 700 largemouth bass with the glochidia (mussel larva) from the 10 Higgins eye mussels.  For most of the volunteers, this was their first time assisting with an inoculation event.  Their enthusiasm and excitement showed through on a cold, windy, and snowy day.  T

his year’s inoculation was special because mussels from this year’s propagation effort will meet the target goals for the Mussel Coordination Team’s (MCT) efforts for production of sub-adult mussels.  With the target goals met, the focus of the MCT will switch from propagation to monitoring of the new Higgins eye populations that have been established over the past five years from mussels propagated from past infestation events at Genoa NFH.  Future Higgins eye propagation will be contingent on the Service’s determination of need for propagation as a tool in the recovery of this endangered species.  The knowledge and techniques learned from the MCT’s work have loaded the bases that could result in a grand slam of down listing or even delisting the Higgins eye pearlymussel off the Endangered Species list.