Upper and Lower Twin Lakes in Hubbard, Wadena counties to be designated ‘infest

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The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is in the process of designating Upper and Lower Twin lakes in Hubbard and Wadena counties as “infested waters” because the faucet snail (Bithynia tentaculata) has been found there. The snail has been linked to waterfowl deaths at Lake Winnibigoshish and the Upper Mississippi pool system in southeastern Minnesota.

A local resident of Lower Twin Lake first noticed the snails attached to his boat and brought them to the attention of local DNR staff.
Trained DNR and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) staff later verified them as faucet snails.

New regulations will take effect at the lake to help stop the movement of the faucet snail to other waters. Once designated as “infested waters,” state law prohibits the transport of water from Upper and Lower Twin without a permit. It also prohibits anglers or commercial bait harvesters from harvesting bait from these waters.

Before leaving a water access at Upper and Lower Twin lakes and traveling on a public road, boaters and anglers must also:

Remove all aquatic plants from boats, trailers and equipment.
Drain all water from bilges, livewells and bait containers.
It is illegal to transport infested water on a public road. Pulling the drain plug before leaving the access is the best way to show that you are draining the water from the boat.

Anglers who have live bait that they want to use again need to drain infested water from the bait container and replace it with tap or spring water. Anglers, boaters and hunters should also check their boats, anchors, waterfowl decoys, push poles and the inside of bait containers for snails and remove them before visiting another lake.

Faucet snails are hosts to parasitic trematodes, a small intestinal parasite believed to have contributed to the deaths of around 9,000 scaup and coots in the past two years on Lake Winnibigoshish. In the last five years, the trematodes are also responsible for many more scaup and coot deaths on the Mississippi River near Winona.

The DNR and USGS staff did not find trematodes in the small number of snails they sampled from Lower Twin Lake. However, they will do further research to determine whether the parasitic trematodes linked to waterfowl deaths are present in the snails.

There is no evidence that the parasite will adversely affect fish species or wildlife other than waterfowl. Anglers can eat fish from Upper and Lower Twin without worry of the trematode.

“By taking a few simple steps such as inspecting, draining and drying, and disposing of any water and aquatic life when leaving Upper and Lower Twin (or any lake or river), boaters and anglers can do their part to help stop the spread of the faucet snail and several other aquatic hitchhikers,” said Darrin Hoverson, DNR invasive species specialist.

More information on the faucet snail and other aquatic invasive species is available online.

More information on ways to help stop aquatic hitchhikers is available online.