Keep 'Rock Snot' Out of Streams
From the US Forest Service:
Rock Snot – spreading terror in streams. Do your part – keep ‘rock snot’ out! OK – just what is rock snot? The scientific name is Didymosphenia geminate, more commonly called ‘Didymo’. Rock snot is a diatom, which is a one-celled freshwater algae (plant) with siliceous (quartz or glass-like) cell walls. The cells are microscopic. The danger of rock snot is that the algae blooms in the summer and forms a mat across the entire stream that can be as much as eight inches thick, and many miles long. This mat literally suffocates aquatic insects and the stream bottom. It ruins the visual appearance of a stream because rock snot looks like toilet paper streaming in the flow. Unlike other algae, rock snot is not slippery; it has the consistency of wet cotton. Throw your line in the stream and try and reel back a t-shirt… rock snot ruins angling opportunities. Once rock snot invades a stream there are no techniques to remove it.
Where did rock snot come from? Rock snot originated in Europe and anglers carried it to New Zealand, Canada, and the western United States, all fabled fishing destinations. Boats, felt-soled waders, fishing equipment, minnow buckets, anything that can stay moist enough so the single-celled diatom doesn’t die, can harbor a diatom and move it to another stream. Once rock snot had been carried to Canada, it spread to the western United States, then the southern United States, and in 2007 showed up in some of the famous trout streams of New England. Rock snot now lives in both the east and west branches of the Delaware River here in Pennsylvania.
Rock snot impacts water recreation because it is unlikely tourists will attempt to swim, tube, boat, or fish in a stream where plants in the stream look like a sewage spill mixed with wet toilet paper. Rock snot can be yellow, brown, or tan in color.
Rock snot cannot be removed from a stream once it invades the stream, but it can be prevented from moving into a new stream by boaters and anglers paying attention to these protections:
Do NOT transport any live fish, bait, other critters, plants, or water from one stream to the next!
Avoid the use of felt-soled waders.
Inspect your boat, equipment, and remove all plants, mud, and ‘gunk’ from your equipment before leaving the area.
Drain all water from your boat onto the ground (not in the stream) before leaving the area.
Disinfect your live wells with a quart of bleach in one-half of a 5-gallon bucket. Dispose of the water on the ground (not in the stream).
Dump your leftover bait on the ground in the trash (not in the stream).
How to disinfect equipment?
1. Soak or spray all non-absorbent surfaces for one minute in a solution of 2 cups of detergent in a 2.5 gallon container, or 1 cup of bleach in a 2.5 gallon container, or hot water above 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Soak absorbent items, such as bathing suits and felt-soled waders, for 40 minutes in hot water above 140 degrees Fahrenheit or in hot water with dish detergent;
OR freeze absorbent items until solid;
OR dry absorbent items until dry to the touch, and then let dry for at least another 48 hours before use.
Photo by Tim Daley, PA DEP
Rock Snot – spreading terror in streams. Do your part – keep ‘rock snot’ out! OK – just what is rock snot? The scientific name is Didymosphenia geminate, more commonly called ‘Didymo’. Rock snot is a diatom, which is a one-celled freshwater algae (plant) with siliceous (quartz or glass-like) cell walls. The cells are microscopic. The danger of rock snot is that the algae blooms in the summer and forms a mat across the entire stream that can be as much as eight inches thick, and many miles long. This mat literally suffocates aquatic insects and the stream bottom. It ruins the visual appearance of a stream because rock snot looks like toilet paper streaming in the flow. Unlike other algae, rock snot is not slippery; it has the consistency of wet cotton. Throw your line in the stream and try and reel back a t-shirt… rock snot ruins angling opportunities. Once rock snot invades a stream there are no techniques to remove it.
Where did rock snot come from? Rock snot originated in Europe and anglers carried it to New Zealand, Canada, and the western United States, all fabled fishing destinations. Boats, felt-soled waders, fishing equipment, minnow buckets, anything that can stay moist enough so the single-celled diatom doesn’t die, can harbor a diatom and move it to another stream. Once rock snot had been carried to Canada, it spread to the western United States, then the southern United States, and in 2007 showed up in some of the famous trout streams of New England. Rock snot now lives in both the east and west branches of the Delaware River here in Pennsylvania. Rock snot impacts water recreation because it is unlikely tourists will attempt to swim, tube, boat, or fish in a stream where plants in the stream look like a sewage spill mixed with wet toilet paper. Rock snot can be yellow, brown, or tan in color.
Rock snot cannot be removed from a stream once it invades the stream, but it can be prevented from moving into a new stream by boaters and anglers paying attention to these protections:
Do NOT transport any live fish, bait, other critters, plants, or water from one stream to the next!
Avoid the use of felt-soled waders.
Inspect your boat, equipment, and remove all plants, mud, and ‘gunk’ from your equipment before leaving the area.
Drain all water from your boat onto the ground (not in the stream) before leaving the area.
Disinfect your live wells with a quart of bleach in one-half of a 5-gallon bucket. Dispose of the water on the ground (not in the stream).
Dump your leftover bait on the ground in the trash (not in the stream).
How to disinfect equipment?
1. Soak or spray all non-absorbent surfaces for one minute in a solution of 2 cups of detergent in a 2.5 gallon container, or 1 cup of bleach in a 2.5 gallon container, or hot water above 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Soak absorbent items, such as bathing suits and felt-soled waders, for 40 minutes in hot water above 140 degrees Fahrenheit or in hot water with dish detergent;
OR freeze absorbent items until solid;
OR dry absorbent items until dry to the touch, and then let dry for at least another 48 hours before use.
Photo by Tim Daley, PA DEP
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