The above photo appears to show two, tiny gravel shaped pieces, less than the size of a finger nail.

They are Zebra mussels, one of the most dangerous invasive species that threaten the lakes of the Adirondacks.

These two were discovered by lake Steward Molly Wisser at the Route 74 Boat Washing station, according to Roger Friedman, from the Schroon lake Association.

The station, established two years ago, is vital to fighting invasives. A hat tip to all three of our area lake associations: The Paradox Lake Association, The Schroon Lake Association and the East Shore Schroon Lake Association for initiating this effort.

And take a bow Molly: your eagle eyes saved what could have been a disastrous event.  More about these mollusks from the Lake Champlain Basin Atlas:

“The zebra mussel is a small freshwater mollusk native to the Black and Caspian Sea regions. First discovered in the Great Lakes in 1988, it is thought that they were transported to North America in the ballast tanks of ships. Since then, the mussels have spread throughout much of the eastern half of the United States.

Zebra mussels were first discovered in the southern part of Lake Champlain in 1993. Since then, the State of Vermont has tracked the spread of zebra mussels northward as part of the Long Term Water Quality and Biological Monitoring Program. Since 1993, zebra mussels have spread throughout nearly all of Lake Champlain. The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation also monitors for zebra mussels on inland lakes”.