Rock snot’s not an invasive species, but sign of changing environment: study

VANCOUVER – It’s called rock snot and it’s clogging river bottoms from coast to coast.

But new research says the green slime is not an invasive species wreaking havoc across Canada and around the world, as once believed.

The study by Environment Canada and Dartmouth College in New Hampshire says it’s caused by a native species of algae responding to changing environmental conditions.

In fact, the researchers believe the offending organisms have been around for thousands of years but their slimy blooms were rare — until now.

The algae blooms affect the insects eaten by salmon and trout, so millions of dollars have been spent on eradication efforts.

But the study published in the most recent issue of the journal BioScience says that money might be better spent trying to understand and mitigate the environmental factors.