Private boating banned at Quabbin

The menacing zebra mussel species that has taken over a Berkshires lake has been found in a stream that feeds into the Housatonic River in Western Massachusetts, amplifying fears that the invasive freshwater mollusk could contaminate drinking water supplies and other waterways across the state.

To prevent further spread, state environmental officials banned private recreational boating yesterday at the Quabbin Reservoir, a source of Boston’s drinking water and one of the state’s prime fishing areas.