Between April and June 2003, 64,500 sterile grass carp were released at nine different locations around Lake Murray to help control the growth of hydrilla.  While this control method should provide many years of lake-wide control, initial results are not expected for about three years. Check out the link below to see a map of the stocking sites!

Map of sterile grass carp introductions.

Surveys in the fall of 2003 indicated approximately 3,880 acres of hydrilla in the lake. The reduction in coverage from 2002 (6,700 acres) was primarily due to the lake drawdown for construction of the backup dam. Hydrilla did not appear to spread to new locations or into deeper water during the year.  

Hydrilla Coverage Map 2003

As water levels rose in 2004 surveys indicated that  further reductions in hydrilla coverage had occurred on Lake Murray.  The survey indicated that there was approximately 2600 acres of hydrilla currently in the lake.  Areas around Dreher Island showed little or no hydrilla growth. 

Hydrilla Coverage Map 2004

Since 2005 late season (October) surveys showed no appreciable amount of Hydrilla to be found. 
Several areas in the upper half of the lake were plagued with severe water primrose problems in the early months of the summer of 2005 but as the season progressed some primrose succumbed to the rising waters and became less problematic. Water primrose is normally a shoreline species that does not grow well in deeper water and the thought is that as the water stays at normal levels the primrose problems will decrease.

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