Invasive species are a real threat to the local ecosystem, and in early August, a certain mollusk was prevented from getting into Washington waters.

On Aug. 5, a wholesale aquarium company in Renton notified the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) of an invasive species that had found its way onto a shipment of Marimo moss balls, which are often used to decorate aquariums and water gardens.

An aquatic invasive species early detection team that was monitoring American Lake in Lakewood was quickly dispatched to the Renton business and verified that the invasive species was a zebra mussel, a freshwater mussel originating from lakes in Russia and Ukraine.

“I would like to commend our industry partner for being vigilant and quickly alerting us to this occurrence,” said Kelly Susewind, WDFW director. “We are rapidly working alongside industry, tribal, state, and federal partners to address this incident. Thank you to all the partners that are working together to keep Washington’s waters free from invasive species.”

According to the WDFW, the team had collected the visible adult mussels and the contaminated moss balls, along with water samples for analysis.

While zebra mussels, and its relative the quagga mussel, are not known to be established within Washington state, they are a prohibited species due to their capacity for “causing significant infrastructure and environmental damage,” which includes clogging pipes and mechanical systems of industrial plants, utilities, lock and dams.

In a statement, the WDFW reported the cost estimate of invasive mussels taking hold in Washington would be more than $100 million a year. This is due to the destructive damage that the species would cause to Washington state power and water infrastructure, along with additional ecological damage.

“We are asking anyone who has purchased Marimo moss balls within the last year from any retailer to inspect the moss balls and take steps to decontaminate their aquarium or water garden for invasive zebra mussels,” said Justin Bush, aquatic invasive species policy coordinator. “Anything that moves can move invasive species. Problem plant seeds can hitchhike on your boots, aquatic animals can attach to your boat or equipment, and harmful species can also move by hitchhiking through commerce, as we see in this case.”

The WDFW asks that any Washingtonian who thinks that invasive mussels may be in their aquariums to fill out an online reporting form, which includes the Washington Invasives app, at invasivespecies.wa.gov/report-a-sighting.

For more information, visit wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/invasive.