FWP hosting invasive species program open house in Havre

Staff and wire

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks will host an open house in Havre Wednesday to present updates regarding the aquatic invasive species program in central and eastern Montana.

The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Best Western Great Northern Inn conference room, located at 1345 First St. in Havre.

Thomas Wolf, AIS Bureau chief from Helena, and Landon Holte, Eastern Montana Area AIS supervisor, along with other FWP staff, will be on hand to present information about the program in 2017, possible changes for the upcoming year, and to answer any questions or concerns.

All anglers, recreationists and interested parties are encouraged to attend to have questions answered and to help FWP in developing ideas and solutions for the AIS program going forward in 2018.

The program now in place was implemented after invasive mussel larvae were detected in Tiber Reservoir south of Chester and and suspect detection in Canyon Ferry in 2016.

FWP reports that in 2017 its AIS inspectors saw more than 85,700 watercraft come through 35 inspection stations, it reported in a release in January. The inspectors intercepted 17 boats transporting zebra or quagga mussels into the state.

FWP and partner agencies collected more than 1,500 plankton samples from 240 waterbodies for early detection monitoring of invasive mussel larvae and other AIS, the release said.