I once asked a former supervisor, who was also the director of a major county parks department, how he prioritized everything his job required him to do. His response was simply, “I imagine every incident is explosive and handle the ones that will cause the biggest bang first.”

If you think about it, many of us operate on this same philosophy. When it comes to the outdoors, caring about the spread of invasive species is equivalent to a box of snap-pop fireworks on most of our explosive scales.

Regrettably, the problems are elevating to a stick of dynamite, and the fuse may already be lit. For example, anyone who has spent time in a boat should be aware of zebra mussels. These hearty little invaders arrived from Eurasia in the 1980s in the ballast tanks of ships, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).

Since then, the thumbnail-sized mussels have spread throughout the continent by hitching rides on boats and trailers like yours and mine. While most of us could take steps to stop their spread, many just choose to ignore it because it doesn’t make a big enough bang in our lives.

Zebra mussels were first found in Missouri in 1999 in the Meramec River. They’ve since spread to the Missouri River, Lake of the Ozarks, Lake Taneycomo, Bull Shoals and the Osage River below Bagnell Dam, according to MDC. In June, microscopic zebra mussel larvae were also found in Pomme de Terre Lake.

Why should any of us care? Zebra mussels compete with our native fish and other animals for food, making them a potential threat to the Show-Me State’s amazing sportfishing opportunities, according to MDC.

Zebra mussels attach themselves to any solid object, killing native mussels by literally smothering them. Infestations can be so bad that docks, buoys and other marine equipment become heavy and sink in the water.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects the economic impact from zebra mussels alone will reach billions of dollars because of power plants and drinking water intakes getting clogged, boat damage and maintenance, and of course the disruption of our aquatic ecosystems.

Still not enough bang? Last summer a man noticed some odd snails as big as chicken eggs in the Niangua River. The snails were taken to a local MDC office and discovered to be Chinese mystery snails, a species on Missouri’s prohibited species list.

Besides being illegal to possess, these snails can also multiply uncontrollably and upset the ecological balance in Missouri waters, MDC officials sais. Since first located, they have been found at locations downstream, and biologists believe they probably already have spread to other locations.

If major outbreaks of zebra mussels or enormous Chinese snails don’t get your fuse burning, take a look or maybe even a hit from a bigger invasive species, the bighead and silver carp.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) these invaders escaped into the Mississippi River system from commercial catfish ponds in the 1980s. Since then, they have taken over every connected river and tributary, including the Missouri right here in our own backyard.

They are now threatening to move into the Great Lakes and then into Canada, where they are expected to thrive in the cooler waters. At this time only an $18 million electric water barrier and the help of folks like you and me prevent this.

Those still willing to brave these waters often wear helmets and transform their boats into something resembling a scene from the movie Mad Max.

What’s worse, the USFWS believes that in the lower Missouri River, Asian carp are now the most abundant large fish, greater than five pounds, in the system. Pretty scary, since they weren’t even found here until the 1980s.

We’ve all given a passing glance at the signs posted at our favorite public areas, overlooked the pages in our hunting and fishing regulations pamphlets and pretty much ignored the warnings. Unfortunately, the very critters MDC has been warning us about are now exploding into very real problems.

Outdoors correspondent Jeff Leonard can be reached at outdoors@npgco.com