Zebra mussels found on lakes near Detroit Lakes, Alexandria

VERGAS, Minn. - The Department of Natural Resources has confirmed zebra mussels in northwestern Minnesota’s East Spirit Lake in Otter Tail County and central Minnesota’s Lake Osakis near Alexandria.
An East Spirit Lake user brought a one-quarter inch zebra mussel to the DNR Fergus Falls office in early July. A subsequent two-day search of four locations by DNR staff found one live zebra mussel one-quarter mile from the initial report.
The lake is 20 miles south of Detroit Lakes near Vergas.
On July 20, DNR invasive species staff conducted dive and shoreline searches to investigate reported zebra mussel veligers (larvae) in Lake Osakis. They found two three-quarter inch adult zebra mussels.
The lake is about 11 miles east of Alexandria in Todd and Douglas counties.
Invasive species alert signs are being posted at their lake accesses, and the DNR will determine whether connected waters will also be added to the infested waters list. The DNR said they appreciate the help of the citizen who reported the find on East Spirit Lake and the work of the Sauk River Watershed District collecting veligers that led to the confirmation in Lake Osakis.
While zebra mussels are a serious problem for infested lakes, more than 98 percent of Minnesota’s lakes are not listed as infested with zebra mussels.