We must be ever more vigilant

One has to wonder how the Rusty Crayfish entered the waters of Rainy Lake. One also has to wonder at how fast the crayfish moved out across the lake.
One also must wonder at how the smelt entered Rainy Lake and how it spread across the north basin until it almost was wiped out one fall as the lake overheated and the oxygen was depleted at lower depths.
Zebra mussels, foreign to North America, have invaded the Great Lakes and many of the tributaries that run into the system. Asian carp are another invasive species that’s gradually making its way across North America.
In Florida, there has been a huge die-off of fish and turtles caused by “red tide” algae bloom that produces toxins that is even dangerous to humans.
The New York Times announced a new invasive tick has been discovered along the eastern seaboard of the United States. The Asian long-horned tick already is known to be spreading rapidly.
It is known as the bush tick in Australia and as the cattle tick in New Zealand.
It follows a similar invasion of the deer tick that is known to carry Lyme disease. The Asian long-horned tick is known in Asia to carry similar pathogens as the deer tick.
The biggest threat is phlebovirus that causes S.F.T.S. (for severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome), which produces abnormally high levels of platelets that cause blood to clot. This often brings on internal bleeding and organ failure.
The syndrome has a significant fatality rate of 15 percent. This particular pathogen is not found in either New Zealand or Australia.
No one knows how this tiny tick found its way to North America or the eastern seaboard. Similarly, no one is sure how the Emerald Ash Bore found its way to North America and now is infecting ash trees across the continent.
We watched in our community as the Dutch Elm disease killed off our entire community forest of elms that bordered our streets. We have seen many of the spruce trees die as the spruce beetle has ravaged trees in Fort Frances and across much of western Canada.
Many of these beetles were foreign to our continent. Similarly, the deer tick was foreign to our forests.
With changes in climate and weather patterns, we must be ever more vigilant to protect our forests, lakes, and rivers–and ourselves.