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Tug Hill Commission to Present Part I of Winter
Wildlife Webinar Series on Sea Lamprey Control in Lake Ontario January 21
Published: January 12, 2025
at 12:00 p.m.
By: Press Release
from NYS Tug Hill Commission
Winter Wildlife Webinar Series, Part 1:
Sea Lamprey Control in Lake Ontario and the Great
Lakes
WATERTOWN, NEW
YORK – The Tug Hill Commission invites the public to join a webinar on
Tuesday, January 21 at 6 p.m. to learn about the ongoing efforts of the
Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) to protect the health of the Great
Lakes fishery from the threat of invasive sea lampreys. Register at tinyurl.com/TugHillWildlife and a Zoom link will be sent along with
your registration confirmation email.
Native to the
Atlantic Ocean, sea lampreys pose a challenge to fish populations in
Eastern Lake Ontario by parasitizing species such as Steelhead, Brown
Trout, Salmon, Lake Sturgeon, Walleye, and many others. Sea lampreys attach
to fish with their suction-cup mouths and feed on bodily fluids, impacting
the health of local fisheries. Introduced to Lake Ontario in the early
1800s, sea lampreys caused significant declines in
fish populations, which led to the development of control programs. This
webinar will provide an overview of current efforts, including lampricide
treatments in tributaries like Orwell Brook and Black Creek, as well as the
use of sea lamprey barriers to prevent migration. Attendees will learn
about the science behind these control measures and their importance in
maintaining healthy fish populations in areas like Eastern Lake Ontario and
the Salmon River.
The speaker will
be Ted Treska, Sea Lamprey Control Program Manager at the Great Lakes
Fishery Commission. He also has experience as a fisheries biologist for the
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service in Wisconsin where part of his job entailed compiling lamprey
damage data from around the Great Lakes for the GLFC. Ted attended
undergraduate school in northern Minnesota before pursuing his master’s
degree from Cornell University. While in New York, he spent considerable
time in the Adirondacks and Catskills, and some time
in the Tug Hill region, helping colleagues on natural resource projects.
The GLFC, under
the Convention on Great Lakes Fisheries, has been working to manage and
control sea lamprey populations for over six decades. The GLFC’s sea
lamprey control efforts have been highly effective since the program’s
inception in 1957. Today, populations have been reduced by 90% in many
areas of the Great Lakes, ensuring the continued vitality of the region’s
$7 billion fishery by preventing the loss of over 100 million pounds of
fish annually due to sea lamprey parasitism.
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The New York
State Tug Hill Commission is a non-regulatory state agency charged with
helping local governments, organizations, and citizens shape the future of
the region, especially its environment and economy. The commission uses a
grassroots approach to build local capacity and provide technical
assistance in land use planning, community development, and natural
resource management.
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