Wow this really could be a main contributing factor as to why zebra mussels are such a widespread problem because there’s no way this hasn’t been happening for a long time.
Some time ago I read that they are suspected to have showed up as a result of large export cargo ships dumping hundreds of gallons of ballast water after delivering their goods.
@@bizzzzzzle yes obviously that’s one of the biggest factors same with waders and boots. I’m just saying that this could definitely be another large contributor
Zebra mussels have been isolated, reproduced, and the offspring from the isolated mussel behaves identical to the parent. Can’t say that with any virus
@@royr2854 1. Not relevant to what was said 2. Closer to 97% (yes, it makes a difference) 3. Rest in Peace to the almost 3million people that make up the fatal 3% & condolences to their families (and lets not even mention the “recovered” ones that will have lifelong health issues and disabilities from their ‘recoveries’ @jose you’re right, but for the hobby they’re even more protective of their fooshies than themselves. So they would still take the mussle invasion more seriously lol
I went to the fish store yesterday and their moss tank had "Not for sale by order of the U.S. Dept of Agriculture" scrawled across it. They had actually found a zebra mussel in a moss ball.
its nice to see someone in the aquatics hobby make a video on this and raise awareness-- I'm not involved in the hobby really, I just watch occasional videos, but I am involved in naturalist communities and I did see this whole thing come up. Word about invasive pests and this kind of stuff tends to go under the radar, or it's just never really properly explained; so a super solid, informative straightforward video like this really does make a difference 👌 love to c it
In Australia moss balls have been banned for a long time because of biosecurity risk, the usual treatments to sterilize them through legal importation kills the moss balls- It's just not possible to import them without getting rid of risk. I'm glad to know that it wasn't just needless paranoia. It's still relatively easy to illegally import them here though, often people buy them without realizing it was illegal- with some cases of authorities chasing up these folks and the sellers, nuking tanks with algaecides etc. I think people in the US have been very lucky to be able to have such loose laws with many exotic species, but it comes with a huge environmental cost. There are many species that I can never keep in Australia, but that's fine- you can't have everything you want in life.
There is a massive problem with them in the reservoirs in Spain. My husband stepped on some and they broke into a million pieces in his foot. I bet that they could really f up filters etc. this is so scary! I’m side eyeing my moss balls now.
For anyone who actually finds a mussel in their tanks: I live very close to the great lakes so in my area this is 100% something the wildlife section of the government will help me with (anyone in Ontario can do this, but I don't remember who you call) I'm sure lots of areas/countries will also have a similar program so it's worth asking about Okay, so if you find a mussel in your tank, get all your fish out of there into another tank and get everything into buckets and containers that won't leak. When I say everything, I mean, decorations, plants, substrate, all the water, everything. Somebody from the government might be able to actually come and pick up your infected stuff, then you just clean your tank really well and start over. Zebra mussels have been hurting the fish population in the great lakes so I don't trust them to be very healthy tank makes for fishies, any of y'all who use live plants , go out and get a second tank for emergencies if you don't have one, if you do have one u might as well make sure it's cycled. As for dumping the water into grass, just be careful because there's still a risk of zebra mussels getting into ground water, septic, and storm drainage systems depending on where you pour it out & how much water you are dumping.
7:35 In this instance if there are zebra mussels or the water is contaminated the aquarium water needs to be sterilized as pouring the water in the yard could easily find the larvae getting to natural water sources from animals, insects, and birds. Boil it, bleach it, or freeze it, alongside cleaning the tank.
@@dehydratedculture9126 also, people like you is why it got banned. Not controlled. Plus, if you have them. They'll track it back to you. You'll pay the huge like $10,000 minimum fine, not me tho. 😂 i got all my mossball a year ago. No hitchikers.
I bought some betta buddy moss balls from petco 3 weeks ago didn't see anything at first really at all for 3weeks. Thought i was safe. But yesterday i saw a weird egg like thing on them took them out put in a bowl & tore open they where full of these weird egg like things (100%not sand) so i called & they said yes they r infected & boil them then put in plastic bag seal & toss so i did. After that i had to drain & redo my tank many hrs later i was done & dumped the water on my lawn (as i was told). Now i think is a better safe than sorry issue it was scary & stressful. So if u bought them tear them & look & keep your eyes open. Unless its petco just boil & toss those.
I’ve lived in the Great Lakes region my whole life...my dad always complained about zebra muscles growing up. They cover the bottoms of boats, the harbors, even on the propellers...oddly enough I was JUST looking at moss balls last night at Petco glad I didn’t buy some
Zebra mussels are just about everywhere in the US since the 1950s and 1960s. This is just clickbait. DNR, park rangers, and wildlife officials tend to be out of the loop about everything and they mainly focus on hunters and fishermen. Go speak to a local fish biologist if you have any serious concerns, most are pretty cool to chat with. This is mostly clickbait. Zebra mussels are unfortunately here to stay in the US.
Reading and hearing about this makes me VERY happy that I dispose of tank water in my garden, where there is zero risk of it entering water sources of any kind, rather than down the sink.
This would explain why I haven’t seen one in my local store for a few years 🥲 my original moss ball from 2019 died after my betta died & the tank lid’s lights stopped working. I’ve just started getting around to slowly re-starting the tank & wanted another one….
I've been studying up about getting my first tank and getting a betta for months.. I finally started purchasing all the plants (including moss balls) about 1.5/2 months ago and finally purchased my fish 2 weeks ago... only to find out about the zebra mussels 3 days later... it was a wild ride 😂🥲
I live in the Great Lakes area, where Zebra Mussels are a big deal. The local schools in my area, or at least mine, have educated us on the problems they cause as far back as middle school. Anyways, I'm an animal care technician and the other week, a local ranger came in to check our plants for moss balls. Luckily, our manager seems to already have been aware of the situation, because in our most recent shipment she stored all the moss balls in the freezer, and we haven't sold them since.
I breed/grow my own for my personal use, I've had them for years and I'm happy to say they are pest free, although i don't know what this means for the future
We have an issue with Zebra muscles in my province. They can only survive outside of water for 30 days. As long as everything you have is dry just wait a month.
Although ducks do occasionally eat mussels analysis of duck stomach contents indicate that mussels account for less than 1% of their diet. ( Randy M. Claramunt, Illinois Prairie Research Institure )
What about geese? Since you know... They’re worthless freeloaders that eat all the fish, eat bread and bite kids. If geese eat zebra muscles I’ll lay off on my hatred towards them for a while.
@@probablyabouttoargue3264 some waterfowl in one location(i can't remember where, but it's a bunch of bird species) annihilate the yearly population, but they still come back after winter
@@probablyabouttoargue3264 yes they do, so are the rest of birds that aggregate near lakes and rivers. Crayfish decimate them , bass and perch eat them also. They were unintentionally introduced in the artificial lake nearby and they were reproducing in huge numbers , but then koi and gold fish which were released in the lake exterminated them all.
From US Fish and Wildlife, “What stores or products were contaminated? At this time, we do not know the full extent of stores or products containing zebra mussels. If you have recently purchased moss balls from any retailer, we recommend they be destroyed following our Destroy, Dispose, Drain instructions.”
Not worried. Use the water from my self-cleaning nano tank to water my barrel of strawberry plants. The aquatic debris is a natural fertilizer. I'm sure any shells from these little pests would just add some extra calcium to the mix.
I bought moss balls 8 months ago at petco i cut mine and stretched them out wedged them in cracks in the rocks in my tank still havent noticed anything besides moss lol
Thank goodness I got mine way back in 2001, it's since given me ten babies. I suppose now these uncontaminated ones would fetch an ultra high price? Lol not selling em tho.
Bought a moss ball from a MN petco around 6 months ago, when I got home I noticed it had a zebra mussel on it. I know how invasive they are so I destroyed the mussel and did a thorough inspection of the ball before I added it to my tank. I returned to petco the following day and told the store clerk about the mussel and they literally said, "Oh, bonus!" This problem has been going on for a while and I am glad it is being addressed
Alot of people are unaware of what these can do. When i was in Michigan everyone new about them. Were I moved to now I wouldn't blame Joe Bob the 18yo at petco for not understanding the issue with it until its explained to them.
Probably not anymore... who has time for moss balls when your being shelled and invaded. Who knew that those moss balls where actually Russian🤔 well according to Russia anyway.
I was actually at the pet store the other day and asked about moss balls, as I was getting the supplies to start a new tank (first one with live plants instead of plastic) And they told me about this. I was so disappointed at first because of not being able to get moss balls. Then I was panicking because they said it was zebra muscles. I hope a lot of people see this video, especially those who need to.
About a month ago, I was in the South Portland, Maine PetCo to get some supplies, and I noticed all their live plant tanks were roped off and had "not for sale - quarantine" signs on them, and all their shelves of moss ball cups and plants in plastic sleeves were wrapped up and also had signs. I asked the guy who works there what was going on, and he said, state officials had come in and said all the plants had to be inspected because of suspected invasive snail infestation. He didn't know much about it other than every tank with live plants had to be put under quarantine until those tanks had been inspected and confirmed free of the snails. He didn't say what type of snails it was that they were looking for, but I wonder if it was these zebra mussels? Seems like it must be since it just happened same time as all this.
Only in America lol. America don't even have black currant fruit missing out on things like Ribena drink, because it kills your pine trees. We just chose black currant and chopped down our pine trees lol
@@mr-mrsknow-it-all2998 it’s better to miss out on something than to let a possible invasive species wreak havoc on the ecosystem and possibly destroy crops and therefore some impacts on the economy and availability of food for certain people.
@@mr-mrsknow-it-all2998 black current was banned in 1911 the logging industry (more profitable than black currents) was booming between 1840 and 1940. Not arguing just informing if you didn’t know
@@christophergomez872 I'm not arguing either. Just a funny thing to point out, that's all lol. They made the wrong choice though, because the logging industry isn't booming now.
I've have bought several dozen from several places over the last couple of years. If they had zebra mussels on them I would have tanks full of them. Probably a new issue from an isolated source, I hope.
Only this is a new problem. I went to a fish store in Phoenix yesterday and their moss tank was closed because they had found a zebra mussel on one of their moss balls.
@@reverendfatheruncleruckus Isolated as in the region the moss is being harvested from.. if regions 1-7 all export moss balls but let's say region 4 is the only one withe the zebras it would be Isolated to that region and other regions moss balls may be allowed back in if confirmed to be zebra free
I was gifted some moss balls about 8 months ago and I noticed a mussel on one of them while I was quarantining them. I put them out in the sun to dry them out. Looks like this has been going on for quite a while.
The Petco employee reported to "Parks and Wildlife" 🤣 those mussels are hitching rides on peoples boats from lake to lake spreading all over..... they are here in Colorado
I put worse things down the drain every day. You should have seen what I flushed after this morning’s coffee. This doesn’t follow common sense-from your yard, water is much more likely to go into a storm drain or pond. If your sewer system is draining into a nearby pond, you have bigger issues than zebra mussels.
I wonder how much cross contamination will be/is an issue. If big box stores are keeping moss balls in their tanks, could these mussels get on other plants, fish, shrimp, snails, ect?
Interesting that some suppliers say they keep the moss balls at lower temps for long periods... the Great Lakes here in Canada/US mostly freeze on top and the zebra mussels survive under the water in those very cold temps that the moss would likely not survive in for longer time frames. Boil, Freeze solid, Dehydrate in the sun, all three 😆.
If there on moss balls how can we tell other plants haven't been contaminated? Lol as I'm typing this watching you just mentioned that too . I have been wondering this. Tissue culture seems to me to be the safest way now.
I work at a pet store, and we had to quarantine all moss balls. The store keeps them in little cups, not tanks. Then fish and game officials came to take them. They told us to keep the water they were in, pour bleach into it, and let sit for 24 hrs. The official said don't pour the water down the drain once it's set, pour it outside.
How about treating moss balls with copper before putting them in aquarium? Copper kills most freshwater invertebrates, without harming the moss. One could then wash the mossball off after it was treated if you put it into a freshwater aquarium with invertebrates.
Here in Michigan, it wasnt just the moss balls. They also looked for other invasive species as well (i.e. Dojos or weather loaches). Please remember folks- because there are so many “common names” doesnt mean that what you purchase is NOT on the prohibited list! Also, please please please stop releasing unwanted fish and creatures out in to the native lakes!!
@@00believe000 there is now a population of them in the wilds in the southwest part of the state now. People really do just dump unwanted aquarium life in to the waters. Last year, we pulled a large red devil out of an inland lake. There are also plants and the prohibited list as well. Not only are these situations bad for our native species, it is very bad for our hobby.
Have moss balls for years in my tank now (actually never brought them, I guess the fragments come from the plants I brought from petco when I start the hobby). Never saw mussels in my tanks and haven't get any new plants for two years. I guess I'm safe on this one.
In an apartment, I'd drain the tank into the tub and toss bleach in there, just like the tank. I almost bought my roommate moss balls for his tank last month. So glad I didn't
I’ve had the same moss ball for ages before this happened, so I think mine is good, my betta would revolt if I took it because he sleeps on it and pushes it about in the tank.
Now i'm just thinking about the moss balls in the lifebearer and shrimp tank where it can hitchhike everywhere especially if the owner is breeding for provit and sold it to various places :/
my brother has some moss balls, he hasnt taken care of them in like a month, and he wants an axolotl. the moss balls were for him to prove he can take care of something. yikes
It shocks me that the officer you spoke with knew nothing about this until now. It was 20-30 years ago that New York had a HUGE problem with zebra muscles. I’m kinda shocked, to be honest. I understand the gap in time, but, wow.
Because that came from boats, and had nothing to do with aquarium supplies. They believe zebra muscles first arrived in the north east on cargo ships when they emptied their ballast tanks. From there they likely hitched a ride on sport boats to lakes and rivers.
I started my aquascape in March & been trying to get moss balls for a bonsai tree, wondering why it was so hard to find ...... Now ik. Still need moss balls
Learn more about the problem: www.fws.gov/fisheries/ANS/zebra-mussel-disposal.html
i actually bought this brand a few months ago.......... well...
I would love to have one with mussels on it for my figure 8 puffers!!!
A trick : you can watch series at Flixzone. Been using it for watching lots of of movies recently.
@Yahir Davion yea, been watching on Flixzone} for months myself :D
@Yahir Davion Yup, I've been using flixzone} for since november myself =)
Wow this really could be a main contributing factor as to why zebra mussels are such a widespread problem because there’s no way this hasn’t been happening for a long time.
Some time ago I read that they are suspected to have showed up as a result of large export cargo ships dumping hundreds of gallons of ballast water after delivering their goods.
No, it’s from ships ballast water and small boats not washed properly before going to another body of water.
@@bizzzzzzle yes obviously that’s one of the biggest factors same with waders and boots. I’m just saying that this could definitely be another large contributor
Wow...well that explains why I couldn’t find any moss balls last week when I was searching to buy some for my tank
Same!
Same!
Yep owned one that died in the process of moving and I finally went to go get new ones and a lot more of them too and couldn’t find aby
Any-*
Pro tip go on ebay loads of fish to buy
You can get moss balls too
You can also get crickets or meal worms for your pets
I bet the hardcore hobbyists are taking this mossball pandemic more seriously than the covid one
Zebra mussels have been isolated, reproduced, and the offspring from the isolated mussel behaves identical to the parent.
Can’t say that with any virus
@@justinmo86 99% recovery rate...
@@royr2854 1. Not relevant to what was said
2. Closer to 97% (yes, it makes a difference)
3. Rest in Peace to the almost 3million people that make up the fatal 3% & condolences to their families (and lets not even mention the “recovered” ones that will have lifelong health issues and disabilities from their ‘recoveries’
@jose you’re right, but for the hobby they’re even more protective of their fooshies than themselves. So they would still take the mussle invasion more seriously lol
@@moonorchid9242 lifelong health issues? Don't think so...
@@jeffreyklima7612 yeah... a virus that attacks the respiratory and cardiovascular systems... nothing could possible go wrong, right? 🙄
THATS WHY
I was so confused why they were recalled at our petsmart last month and no other coworkers new why. But zebra mussels make sense
I went to the fish store yesterday and their moss tank had "Not for sale by order of the U.S. Dept of Agriculture" scrawled across it. They had actually found a zebra mussel in a moss ball.
its nice to see someone in the aquatics hobby make a video on this and raise awareness-- I'm not involved in the hobby really, I just watch occasional videos, but I am involved in naturalist communities and I did see this whole thing come up. Word about invasive pests and this kind of stuff tends to go under the radar, or it's just never really properly explained; so a super solid, informative straightforward video like this really does make a difference 👌 love to c it
In Australia moss balls have been banned for a long time because of biosecurity risk, the usual treatments to sterilize them through legal importation kills the moss balls- It's just not possible to import them without getting rid of risk. I'm glad to know that it wasn't just needless paranoia. It's still relatively easy to illegally import them here though, often people buy them without realizing it was illegal- with some cases of authorities chasing up these folks and the sellers, nuking tanks with algaecides etc. I think people in the US have been very lucky to be able to have such loose laws with many exotic species, but it comes with a huge environmental cost. There are many species that I can never keep in Australia, but that's fine- you can't have everything you want in life.
There is a massive problem with them in the reservoirs in Spain. My husband stepped on some and they broke into a million pieces in his foot. I bet that they could really f up filters etc. this is so scary! I’m side eyeing my moss balls now.
When he said that the zebra mussels have a microscopic larval stage I instantly thought "moss ball covid"
Lol
Honestly that's horrifying
For anyone who actually finds a mussel in their tanks: I live very close to the great lakes so in my area this is 100% something the wildlife section of the government will help me with (anyone in Ontario can do this, but I don't remember who you call)
I'm sure lots of areas/countries will also have a similar program so it's worth asking about
Okay, so if you find a mussel in your tank, get all your fish out of there into another tank and get everything into buckets and containers that won't leak. When I say everything, I mean, decorations, plants, substrate, all the water, everything.
Somebody from the government might be able to actually come and pick up your infected stuff, then you just clean your tank really well and start over.
Zebra mussels have been hurting the fish population in the great lakes so I don't trust them to be very healthy tank makes for fishies, any of y'all who use live plants , go out and get a second tank for emergencies if you don't have one, if you do have one u might as well make sure it's cycled.
As for dumping the water into grass, just be careful because there's still a risk of zebra mussels getting into ground water, septic, and storm drainage systems depending on where you pour it out & how much water you are dumping.
7:35 In this instance if there are zebra mussels or the water is contaminated the aquarium water needs to be sterilized as pouring the water in the yard could easily find the larvae getting to natural water sources from animals, insects, and birds. Boil it, bleach it, or freeze it, alongside cleaning the tank.
If you bought moss balls recently, just destroy them straight up. Not worth it.
u gotta burn them, thoroughly
You gotta burn the whole tank, everything but the fish themselves and the glass. You're not even supossed to keep your filter.
Yeah not gonna do that
@@dehydratedculture9126 Cool story.
@@dehydratedculture9126 also, people like you is why it got banned. Not controlled. Plus, if you have them. They'll track it back to you. You'll pay the huge like $10,000 minimum fine, not me tho. 😂 i got all my mossball a year ago. No hitchikers.
I'm quarantining all new plants I buy in a separate tank for a long time just in case the Zebra muscle hitched a ride.
I bought some betta buddy moss balls from petco 3 weeks ago didn't see anything at first really at all for 3weeks. Thought i was safe.
But yesterday i saw a weird egg like thing on them took them out put in a bowl & tore open they where full of these weird egg like things (100%not sand) so i called & they said yes they r infected & boil them then put in plastic bag seal & toss so i did. After that i had to drain & redo my tank many hrs later i was done & dumped the water on my lawn (as i was told).
Now i think is a better safe than sorry issue it was scary & stressful. So if u bought them tear them & look & keep your eyes open. Unless its petco just boil & toss those.
I’ve lived in the Great Lakes region my whole life...my dad always complained about zebra muscles growing up. They cover the bottoms of boats, the harbors, even on the propellers...oddly enough I was JUST looking at moss balls last night at Petco glad I didn’t buy some
Someone said all they did was pick out the zebra mussels and used the moss balls
Zebra mussels are just about everywhere in the US since the 1950s and 1960s. This is just clickbait. DNR, park rangers, and wildlife officials tend to be out of the loop about everything and they mainly focus on hunters and fishermen. Go speak to a local fish biologist if you have any serious concerns, most are pretty cool to chat with.
This is mostly clickbait. Zebra mussels are unfortunately here to stay in the US.
I’m originally from Green Bay wi, and zebra mussels are so bad they literally litter an entire beach (a bay) off of Lake Michigan
I also live in Michigan and it's disappointing that they are taking over the lakes
Reading and hearing about this makes me VERY happy that I dispose of tank water in my garden, where there is zero risk of it entering water sources of any kind, rather than down the sink.
This would explain why I haven’t seen one in my local store for a few years 🥲 my original moss ball from 2019 died after my betta died & the tank lid’s lights stopped working. I’ve just started getting around to slowly re-starting the tank & wanted another one….
Me: i have no idea what a moss ball is or what its for
Also me: watching this video
I’ve got about 8 moss balls that I’ve had some for at least two years. It’s funny to think that moss balls could be more valuable than gold.
I've been studying up about getting my first tank and getting a betta for months.. I finally started purchasing all the plants (including moss balls) about 1.5/2 months ago and finally purchased my fish 2 weeks ago... only to find out about the zebra mussels 3 days later... it was a wild ride 😂🥲
I live in the Great Lakes area, where Zebra Mussels are a big deal. The local schools in my area, or at least mine, have educated us on the problems they cause as far back as middle school.
Anyways, I'm an animal care technician and the other week, a local ranger came in to check our plants for moss balls. Luckily, our manager seems to already have been aware of the situation, because in our most recent shipment she stored all the moss balls in the freezer, and we haven't sold them since.
Hello, would it not be possible to treat the whole tank with a copper based medication ?
Kind of interesting that they can live in a drain I assume like a kitchen sink drain ?
Omg nooo imma cri
I breed/grow my own for my personal use, I've had them for years and I'm happy to say they are pest free, although i don't know what this means for the future
We have an issue with Zebra muscles in my province. They can only survive outside of water for 30 days. As long as everything you have is dry just wait a month.
So what you’re saying to me is moss balls are officially cancelled in 2021. Someone get those crazy Twitter users on this
Zebra mussles : invades the us waterways
Ducks : hehehe boi
Last time i checked ducks love these things
Although ducks do occasionally eat mussels analysis of duck stomach contents indicate that mussels account for less than 1% of their diet. ( Randy M. Claramunt, Illinois Prairie Research Institure )
will if they do spread it will probably increase
What about geese? Since you know... They’re worthless freeloaders that eat all the fish, eat bread and bite kids. If geese eat zebra muscles I’ll lay off on my hatred towards them for a while.
@@probablyabouttoargue3264 some waterfowl in one location(i can't remember where, but it's a bunch of bird species) annihilate the yearly population, but they still come back after winter
@@probablyabouttoargue3264 yes they do, so are the rest of birds that aggregate near lakes and rivers. Crayfish decimate them , bass and perch eat them also.
They were unintentionally introduced in the artificial lake nearby and they were reproducing in huge numbers , but then koi and gold fish which were released in the lake exterminated them all.
Thanks for this. Can't buy fish in Canada until April due to zebra mussels and didnt know why.
super nice tank behind you there cheers, i am looking at the background tank all the time ;D
Would you know where one could find a list of all the brands known to be infected?
From US Fish and Wildlife, “What stores or products were contaminated?
At this time, we do not know the full extent of stores or products containing zebra mussels. If you have recently purchased moss balls from any retailer, we recommend they be destroyed following our Destroy, Dispose, Drain instructions.”
Not worried. Use the water from my self-cleaning nano tank to water my barrel of strawberry plants. The aquatic debris is a natural fertilizer. I'm sure any shells from these little pests would just add some extra calcium to the mix.
The best thing would be to come up with a technique that kills the invasive species without harming the moss balls.
I wouldn’t be to concerned, I’ve had them in my tank before on plants that I collected from the river by my house.
Some of ours from petco had small red worms as well as the zebra muscles
I've been buying marimo for years from petco and haven't noticed anything, but good to know none the less.
Is there a way to rid the moss balls of the zebra mussels without killing the moss balls?
just take the mussels off and set up a tank just for the zebra mussels...zebra mussel lives matter!
I bought two moss balls from The Sill and they shipped from Alabama....not out of state. They arrive Friday lol. What should I do?
This is click bait. Zebra mussels are just about everywhere in the US sinnce about the 1950s and 1960s
Are they save now?
That’s why I couldn’t find them
I bought moss balls 8 months ago at petco i cut mine and stretched them out wedged them in cracks in the rocks in my tank still havent noticed anything besides moss lol
Is this a UK problem too? Ive not seen anything on my mossballs
Would copper sulfate not take care of the mussels for the tanks that don’t have other invertebrates of course
Well there goes my trip to the store to buy a mossball. Lol
Clickbait
I've been trying to get a moss ball for a year now. First COVID messed things up, now THIS!!?! 😭😭
Thank goodness I got mine way back in 2001, it's since given me ten babies. I suppose now these uncontaminated ones would fetch an ultra high price? Lol not selling em tho.
I bought my moss balls last year in February, i think im fine?
Me whos been growing moss balls in my bedroom for years 😳 haven't purchased new ones in at least 4 - 5 years.
If anyone wants to buy some clean moss balls HMU! I'm from Utah, I won't upcharge the f out of you either
@@00believe000 I’ll trade moss balls for guppies if ya want
sounds like you are going to be rich
Time to start my mossball cartel from my single ball.
Can i sue the supplier for losses and damages ?
who needs ti resale niki when you can resale mossballs
And I clicked on this video thinking people were smuggling coke in moss balls
almost bought some last week and didn't, then two days later changed my mind and GONE! NO MORE MOSS BALLS!
I bought 4 moss balls from Petco and PetSmart about 3 months ago and so far no mussels appeared in my aquarium
I wonder how many people just tossed the muscle or released it into the wild not knowing.
I bought mine a few months ago around the start of 2021! Am I safe? I don’t want North to be infested :(
Zebra mussels invasions are nothing new. This is clickbait
Put my moss balls in my saltwater tank killed everything After leaving it in there in hour
I bought Marimo moss balls from PetSmart 3 days before the recall went out... yikes.
Love your shirt where can I get one?!
tank is beautiful!
You serious Moss balls are getting banned 😔 Well I feel proud that I have moss balls
I've had mine for a year and I Emediatly noticed the muscle but I thought it was normal
*I've gotten sooooo many new moss balls in the past 3 months 😯 I'm glad I got them when I did 😌*
Good job legend..keep going🙏
Zebra mussels are no joke
They've infested Lake Erie. Not good at all. It runs into the Ashtabula River, on to the Ohio River & then into the Mississippi.
Bought a moss ball from a MN petco around 6 months ago, when I got home I noticed it had a zebra mussel on it. I know how invasive they are so I destroyed the mussel and did a thorough inspection of the ball before I added it to my tank. I returned to petco the following day and told the store clerk about the mussel and they literally said, "Oh, bonus!" This problem has been going on for a while and I am glad it is being addressed
What do they mean by “oh bonus”
@@sxcgremlinkyo119 free snail/mussel without extra payment. That's implements that you should be happy which you are clearly not with a zebra mussel.
oH bOnUs
Alot of people are unaware of what these can do. When i was in Michigan everyone new about them. Were I moved to now I wouldn't blame Joe Bob the 18yo at petco for not understanding the issue with it until its explained to them.
That's like going to a furniture store saying their couch gave you roaches and them saying "oh, bonus!"
Imagine being the law enforcement officer in charge of the infamous "Moss balls" case. He'll be famous at the station
Ball inspector at your service
Invasive species are the worst thing, weird that moss balls come from Ukraine
My moss balls a Soviet!
@randomdoodification in russia moss ball owns you
Probably not anymore... who has time for moss balls when your being shelled and invaded. Who knew that those moss balls where actually Russian🤔 well according to Russia anyway.
Moss balls are the new COVID 2021 for the hobby 😂😢
Ugh. Lose
Mossvid😒😂
Aww, and they are so cute.
Now it's time to capitalize on selling uninfected moss balls for premium price and people will pay it. Moss balls is the new aquarium gold.
Someone said all they did was pick out the zebra mussels and used the moss balls
I was actually at the pet store the other day and asked about moss balls, as I was getting the supplies to start a new tank (first one with live plants instead of plastic)
And they told me about this. I was so disappointed at first because of not being able to get moss balls.
Then I was panicking because they said it was zebra muscles.
I hope a lot of people see this video, especially those who need to.
About a month ago, I was in the South Portland, Maine PetCo to get some supplies, and I noticed all their live plant tanks were roped off and had "not for sale - quarantine" signs on them, and all their shelves of moss ball cups and plants in plastic sleeves were wrapped up and also had signs.
I asked the guy who works there what was going on, and he said, state officials had come in and said all the plants had to be inspected because of suspected invasive snail infestation. He didn't know much about it other than every tank with live plants had to be put under quarantine until those tanks had been inspected and confirmed free of the snails.
He didn't say what type of snails it was that they were looking for, but I wonder if it was these zebra mussels? Seems like it must be since it just happened same time as all this.
Same here about 10 days ago.
Only in America lol. America don't even have black currant fruit missing out on things like Ribena drink, because it kills your pine trees. We just chose black currant and chopped down our pine trees lol
@@mr-mrsknow-it-all2998 it’s better to miss out on something than to let a possible invasive species wreak havoc on the ecosystem and possibly destroy crops and therefore some impacts on the economy and availability of food for certain people.
@@mr-mrsknow-it-all2998 black current was banned in 1911 the logging industry (more profitable than black currents) was booming between 1840 and 1940. Not arguing just informing if you didn’t know
@@christophergomez872 I'm not arguing either. Just a funny thing to point out, that's all lol. They made the wrong choice though, because the logging industry isn't booming now.
I've have bought several dozen from several places over the last couple of years. If they had zebra mussels on them I would have tanks full of them. Probably a new issue from an isolated source, I hope.
It's only been going for 3-4 months.
Only this is a new problem. I went to a fish store in Phoenix yesterday and their moss tank was closed because they had found a zebra mussel on one of their moss balls.
Not isolated. They've found them in 43 states last I checked.
@@reverendfatheruncleruckus Isolated as in the region the moss is being harvested from.. if regions 1-7 all export moss balls but let's say region 4 is the only one withe the zebras it would be Isolated to that region and other regions moss balls may be allowed back in if confirmed to be zebra free
@@StinkiSlinki I got you. Export region's.🙃 I was thinking import isolated to a few states, not export isolated to a small region.😑
I was gifted some moss balls about 8 months ago and I noticed a mussel on one of them while I was quarantining them. I put them out in the sun to dry them out. Looks like this has been going on for quite a while.
Behind you is a work of art. That is my dream tank
im a man of nano tanks imo
I read that the employee had reported it several months ago. It took that long for it to be looked into and they continued selling until then.
The Petco employee reported to "Parks and Wildlife" 🤣 those mussels are hitching rides on peoples boats from lake to lake spreading all over..... they are here in Colorado
They're here in Canada too! Been here since the 1980s... Who knew that would be an invasive species...
I was thinking maybe Fish and Wildlife. Either way, there’s at least one local lake with them by me
I don't know if I'm sadder about saying goodbye to my little moss or because I may have unknowingly put an invasive species into the waterways. :(
I'm not throwing away my moss balls, I'll see if any mussels grow. And only do water changes with the moss balls in a cup
@Dani Masterson probably to save the fish? Placing them in cup doesn't put th fish at risk if nitrate spikes from no water changes.
I put worse things down the drain every day. You should have seen what I flushed after this morning’s coffee. This doesn’t follow common sense-from your yard, water is much more likely to go into a storm drain or pond. If your sewer system is draining into a nearby pond, you have bigger issues than zebra mussels.
I wonder how much cross contamination will be/is an issue. If big box stores are keeping moss balls in their tanks, could these mussels get on other plants, fish, shrimp, snails, ect?
I vaguely remember mussel “larvae” having part of their lifecycle in fish gills?
@@____________838 Zebra mussels don't, the ones that do fake a fish on their foot for fish too eat.
@Dani Masterson YMMV.
Very interesting and it’s a large issue. I honestly can’t see how to deal with it without nuking everything and starting from scratch
You're supposed to nuke everything, except your glass and fish if you bought a mossball recently
Interesting that some suppliers say they keep the moss balls at lower temps for long periods... the Great Lakes here in Canada/US mostly freeze on top and the zebra mussels survive under the water in those very cold temps that the moss would likely not survive in for longer time frames. Boil, Freeze solid, Dehydrate in the sun, all three 😆.
Great lakes have thermal reservoirs under the ice
My fish shop didnt even know about this issue now I made them check their plants lol
If there on moss balls how can we tell other plants haven't been contaminated? Lol as I'm typing this watching you just mentioned that too . I have been wondering this. Tissue culture seems to me to be the safest way now.
It took me like 3 minutes to figure out what that ring was on the side of your fish tank
I work at a pet store, and we had to quarantine all moss balls. The store keeps them in little cups, not tanks. Then fish and game officials came to take them. They told us to keep the water they were in, pour bleach into it, and let sit for 24 hrs. The official said don't pour the water down the drain once it's set, pour it outside.
I work at a pet store that keeps their moss balls in their display tanks. We just threw them out “in a locked dumpster”
Don't pour it outside unless its been already bleached.
How about treating moss balls with copper before putting them in aquarium? Copper kills most freshwater invertebrates, without harming the moss. One could then wash the mossball off after it was treated if you put it into a freshwater aquarium with invertebrates.
Here in Michigan, it wasnt just the moss balls. They also looked for other invasive species as well (i.e. Dojos or weather loaches).
Please remember folks- because there are so many “common names” doesnt mean that what you purchase is NOT on the prohibited list!
Also, please please please stop releasing unwanted fish and creatures out in to the native lakes!!
I didn't even know weather loaches were invasive 😮
@@00believe000 there is now a population of them in the wilds in the southwest part of the state now. People really do just dump unwanted aquarium life in to the waters.
Last year, we pulled a large red devil out of an inland lake.
There are also plants and the prohibited list as well.
Not only are these situations bad for our native species, it is very bad for our hobby.
Have moss balls for years in my tank now (actually never brought them, I guess the fragments come from the plants I brought from petco when I start the hobby). Never saw mussels in my tanks and haven't get any new plants for two years. I guess I'm safe on this one.
Just when I finally got into having live plants?! 🤷♀️ 🤦♀️ (Btw, I was actually wondering why they suddenly vanished from the stores recently.)
In an apartment, I'd drain the tank into the tub and toss bleach in there, just like the tank. I almost bought my roommate moss balls for his tank last month. So glad I didn't
And on top of all that, I just found Moss muscles on my zebra balls...
Bahaha 🤣
ZEBRA BALLS PLEASE HAHA
Interesting… 😂
I’ve had the same moss ball for ages before this happened, so I think mine is good, my betta would revolt if I took it because he sleeps on it and pushes it about in the tank.
Hey. I am from Ukraine. I have never seen those mussels in the wild.
they all peaced out and hitchhiked over here instead lul
Wiki says that they native for South parts of Ukraine and Russia.
I’ve been wondering about the possible migration to other plans as well. Many places just have their moss balls in a tank with other plants and fish.
Now i'm just thinking about the moss balls in the lifebearer and shrimp tank where it can hitchhike everywhere especially if the owner is breeding for provit and sold it to various places :/
Someone said all they did was pick out the zebra mussels and used the moss balls
my brother has some moss balls, he hasnt taken care of them in like a month, and he wants an axolotl. the moss balls were for him to prove he can take care of something. yikes
poor moss ball
No way not moss balls next. The world is ruined without them. Please not meatballs next.
It shocks me that the officer you spoke with knew nothing about this until now. It was 20-30 years ago that New York had a HUGE problem with zebra muscles. I’m kinda shocked, to be honest. I understand the gap in time, but, wow.
Because that came from boats, and had nothing to do with aquarium supplies. They believe zebra muscles first arrived in the north east on cargo ships when they emptied their ballast tanks. From there they likely hitched a ride on sport boats to lakes and rivers.
Someone said in the comments that all they did was pick out the zebra mussels and still used the moss balls maybe they should share this info
I just heard of this recently on a Facebook group tbh. sucks since I wanted to get moss balls soon :(
I’m pretty sure you can unless your going to put them in water sources!
@@speckle1705 Sorry if i'm being annoying- but i just wanted to ask, by that do you mean like the sink or a fish tank or stuff like that?
I started my aquascape in March & been trying to get moss balls for a bonsai tree, wondering why it was so hard to find ...... Now ik. Still need moss balls