Michigan scientists covered invasive zebra mussels with weighted lakebed mats and pumped carbon dioxide underneath; after five days, mortality of caged mussels topped 80%

• The approach is based partly on earlier laboratory research suggesting that carbon dioxide can be more harmful to zebra mussels than to some native freshwater mussels.
• Zebra mussels are small, but their impact on freshwater ecosystems can be enormous.
• Once established, the invasive shellfish can blanket lakebeds, crowd out native species and alter the communities that depend on them.