(Helena) A Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks warden stopped a driver pulling a mussel-fouled tugboat after he drove past an aquatic invasive species (AIS) inspection station near Anaconda last week.
The driver was traveling from Lake Michigan to the Puget Sound in Washington.
The warden had the driver return to the inspection station, where not only a great amount of mussels were found but also barnacles, indicating the boat was likely in salt water before it went to Lake Michigan. The boat was out of the water for two days, and it is possible that some of the mussels were still viable.
