Missouri Warns of Apocalyptic Species Hidden in Moss Balls

If you'd like to see how drinking water and native species in Missouri could perish, you need to look in moss balls based on a new warning from the state.

The Missouri Department of Conservation just issued a bulletin days ago warning that residents need to know what might lie within moss balls. It is believed that an invasive species which has been discovered in Washington state has been distributed in Missouri and it's extremely bad news for drinking water.

The invasive species they're warning about are zebra mussels. The USGS says that there's good reason to be concerned about this species taking over Missouri as they choke out native mussels and they clog up water intakes and can disrupt power plant operation, too.

The Missouri Department of Conservation says zebra mussels were first discovered in Missouri in the Mississippi River in the St. Louis area in 1991 and have now spread to many places in the state including the Meramec River in addition to the Osage and Missouri River.

That's why these moss balls which came to Missouri from Washington State are a big potential problem if their presence becomes even more than its been in the past.

The state of Missouri has instructions on what to do if you find that you have zebra mussels.