File:  <zebramussels >                                                         Pooled References                                GENERAL INDEX                        [Navigate to   MAIN MENU ]

 

 

Zebra Mussels

 

Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas) -- Mollusca:  Dreissenidae

 

Contact

 

 

            ------ CLICK on photo to enlarge.  To search for Subject Matter, Depress Ctrl/F

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

       The zebra mussel is a small freshwater mussel.  The species was originally native to the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally introduced to numerous other areas and has become an invasive species in many countries worldwide.  By the 1980s, the species had invaded the Great Lakes, Hudson River, and Lake Travis.

 

       The species was first described in 1769 by German zoologist Peter Simon Pallas in the Ural, Volga, and Dnieper Rivers.  Zebra mussels get their name from a striped pattern commonly seen on their shells, though it is not universally present.  They are usually about the size of a fingernail, but can grow to a maximum length around 2 in (5.1 cm).  Shells are D-shaped, and attached to the substrate with strong filamented fibers, which come out of their oldest point of the valve on the dorsal (hinged) side.

 

       These mussels have a long history of invasion and have successfully established in Great Britain (1824), The Netherlands (1827), The Czech Republic (1893), Sweden (1920), Italy (1973), the Great Lakes in the USA (1988), and California (2008).  Quagga mussels were first found in the USA in the Great Lakes in 1989, Nevada in 2007, and California in 2008.   Ballast water discharge from transoceanic ships is thought to be responsible for the long distance spread of zebra and quagga mussels from their original home ranges in eastern Europe.  Short distance spread between fresh waterways within countries most likely occurs via the movement of recreational boats.  This occurs when boats are not cleaned and dried adequately and contaminated watercraft are then moved from infested waterways to pristine water bodies where mussels are accidentally introduced.  These mussels can survive for 3-5 days out of water without suffering lethal desiccation.

 

       Where quagga and zebra mussels are found together quagga mussels may outcompete zebra mussels.  But quagga mussels can flourish at depths greater than the zebra mussels and they are also are more tolerant of colder water. 

 

        Invasions of the mussels have had ruinous impacts where they became established.  They clog water intake structures that then increases maintenance costs for water treatment and power plants.  Recreational activities on lakes and rivers are adversely affected as mussels accumulate.

 

       The shells of both mussel species are sharp and can cut people, which forces the wearing of shoes when walking along infested beaches or over rocks.  Mussels adhering to boat hulls can increase drag, affect boat steering, and clog engines, all of which can lead to overheating and engine malfunctions.  Ecological problems also result from mussel invasions.  Zebra and quagga mussels can kill native freshwater mussels in two ways: (1) attachment to the shells of native species can kill them, and (2) these invasive species can outcompete native mussels and other filter feeding invertebrates for food.  This problem has been particularly acute in some areas of the USA that have a very rich diversity of native freshwater mussel species.

 

       These mussels have been associated with avian botulism outbreaks in the Great Lakes which have caused the mortality of tens of thousands of birds.  Because of their filter feeding habit, it has been estimated that these mussels can acquire organic pollutants in their tissues by as much as 300,000 times when compared to concentrations in the water in which they are living.  Therefore, these pollutants can increase as they are passed up the food chain when contaminated mussels are eaten by predators (e.g., fish and crayfish), who in turn are eaten by other organisms (e.g., recreational fishermen who eat contaminated fish.).  High mussel populations can increase water acidity and decrease concentrations of dissolved oxygen.

 

       Invasions by quagga and zebra mussels have been documented as having some positive affects on receiving ecosystems.  For example, filtration of water by mussels as they extract food removes particulate matter.  This filtration has improved water clarity, and reduced the eutrophication of polluted lakes.  In some instances these improvements may have benefited local fishing industries.  Conversely, improved water clarity allows penetration of light to greater depths which can alter the species composition of aquatic plant communities and associated ecosystems.  This improved water quality is thought to aid algal blooms that get washed ashore where they rot making recreational beaches unusable.  Furthermore, the removal of phytoplankton may leave other aquatic animals without sufficient food.

 

       Dr. Mark Hoddle of the University of California reported that invasion success in some areas of California may be affected by water chemistry.  Waterways around the Sierra Nevada mountains may have insufficient calcium (an element needed for shell growth) and some lakes in northeast California may be too salty for mussel survival.  However, probably most freshwater areas in California will be able to sustain zebra and quagga mussels.

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

Alteration of the Freshwater Ecosystem, An Overview.  2016.  U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (PDF).

 

Angling club closes down at 'clean' Salford Quays.  2011.  B.B.C. News. 19 December.

 

Benson, Amy.  2009.   Zebra mussel FAQs.  Florida biology.usgs.gov.

 

Blažka, F.  1893).  Do Čech zavlečená slávka: Dreissena polymorpha Pall.   Vesmír (in Czech). 22 (15):  177–178.

 

Borcherding, J.  1991.  The annual reproductive cycle of the freshwater mussel Dreissena polymorpha Pallas in lakes.  Oecologia. 87 (2):  208–218.

 

Bowman, Sarah.  2021.  Have an aquarium? Here are the five things to know about invasive zebra mussels in moss balls.   The Indianapolis Star.  16 November.

 

British waterways fight invasion by Russian zebra mussels.  2011.  B.B.C. News. 4 August.

 

Case Study: Zebra Mussel.  2009.  United States Department Of  State.  The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs. 2001-2009.state.gov.

 

Connelly, N. A., C. R. O'Neill Jr., B. A.  Knuth  & T. L.  Brown, T. L.  2007.  Economic impacts of zebra mussels on drinking water treatment and electric power generation facilities.  Environmental Management. 40 (1):  105–12.

 

Drake, John M. & Jonathan M. Bossenbroek.  2004.  The Potential Distribution of zebra mussels in the United States.   BioScience Vol. 54, No 10.

 

Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771).  2013.  World Register of Marine Species.. Feb 25, 2017.

 

Effler, Steven W., Carol M. Brooks, Keith Whitehead, Bruce Wagner, Susan M. Doerr, MaryGail Perkins, Clifford A. Siegfried, Leigh Walrath & Raymond P. Canale.  1996.  Impact of Zebra Mussel Invasion on River Water Quality.  Water Environment Research Vol. 68 (2):  205–214.

 

Garton, D. W.;  D. J. Berg, A. M.  Stoeckmann  & W. R. Hagg.  1993.   Biology of recent invertebrate invading species in the Great Lakes: The spiny water flea, Bythotrephes cederstoemi, and the zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha.  In McKnight, B. N. (ed.). Biological pollution: The control and impact of invasive exotic species.  Indianapolis, Indiana: Indiana Academy of Science. pp. 63–84.

 

Hoddle, M. S.  2010.  Quagga and Zebra Mussels.  Center For Invasive Species Research, Univ. of California Riverside.

 

Horsák, M., L. Juřičková, L. Beran, T. Čejka  &  L. Dvořák.  2010.   Komentovaný seznam měkkýšů zjištěných ve volné přírodě České a Slovenské republiky. [Annotated list of mollusc species recorded outdoors in the Czech and Slovak Republics].  . Malacologica Bohemoslovaca, Suppl. 1:  1–37.

 

Janega, James.  2008.  Botulism takes fatal toll on thousands of Great Lakes birds.  Chicago Tribune.  28 September.

 

Lori, Elisabetta & Simone Cianfanelli.  2006.  New records of Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771) (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Dreissenidae) from Central Italy.  Aquatic Invasions. 1 (4):  281–283.

 

Mackie, G.; W. Gibbons, R. Muncaster  &  I. Gray.  1989.  The Zebra Mussel, Dreissena polymorpha: A synthesis of European Experiences and a preview for North America (Report). Ontario Ministry of Environment.

 

Manitoba family spots 'dark clumps' of zebra mussels at Grand Beach.  2017.  Canadian Broadcast. C. News Manitoba.  5 June.

 

Molloya, Daniel P.; Alexander Y. Karatayevb; Lyubov E. Burlakovab; Dina P. Kurandinac;  & Franck Laruellea.  1997.  Natural enemies of zebra mussels: Predators, parasites, and ecological competitors.  Reviews in Fisheries Science. 5 (1):  27–97.

 

Mollusca Slovenska.  1991.  [The Slovak molluscs].  VEDA vydavateľstvo Slovenskej akadémie vied, Bratislava, 344 pp.

 

Nicholls, Kenneth H.  &  Gordon J. Hopkins.  1993.  Recent Changes in Lake Erie (North Shore) Phytoplankton: Cumulative

Impacts of Phosphorus Loading Reductions and the Zebra Mussel Introduction.  Journal of Great Lakes Research. 19 (4):  637–647.

 

Oppi, E.  1973.  Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas) nuovamente in Italia. (Bivalvia, Dreissenidae).  Mem. Mus. Civ. St. Nat. Verona (in Italian). 20:  45–49.

 

Province redoubles fight against zebra mussels.  2015.  Winnipeg Sun.  28 May,

 

Quagga and Zebra Mussels Incident Description.  2018.  California Department of Fish & Wildlife.  5 June.

 

Sagoff, M.  2003.  What's Wrong with Exotic Species?  (Report). College Park, Maryland: Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy, Maryland School of Public Affairs.  13 pp.

 

Schloesser, Don W. & Thomas F. Nalepa.  1994.   Dramatic decline of unionid bivalves in offshore waters of western Lake Erie after infestation by the zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha.  U. S. Geo. Survey Great Lakes Science Center.

 

Stimers, M. J.  2008.  Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) Invasion into the Upper Platte River: Using GIS and Genetic Algorithm Rule-set Prediction to Model Spread.  The Pennsylvania Geographer 45 (2):  57–70.

 

Stoler, Steve.  2011.   Water district braces for North Texas drought crisis.  WFAA.com.  24 April.

 

Strayer, David L.  2009.  Twenty Years of Zebra Mussels: Lessons from the Mollusk That Made Headlines.  Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment Vol. 7 (3):  135–141.

 

The National Atlas of the United States of America.  2009.  Zebra Mussels.  Nationalatlas.gov.

 

Van Damme, D.  2014.   Dreissena polymorpha.   IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

 

Walker, Tim.  1991.   Dreissena Disaster:  Scientists battle an invasion of zebra mussels.  Science News 4 May 1991

 

Werner, S.  2005.   Strong impact of wintering waterbirds on zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) populations at Lake Constance, Germany.  Freshwater Biology. 50 (8):  1412–1426.

 

Zebra Mussel Discovered in North Dakota.  2020.  North Dakota Game and Fish Department.  1 July.

 

Zebra mussel = Invasive species: Minnesota DNR.  1999.   Dnr.state.mn.us. 1999-08-24.

 

Zebra Mussels Overwhelm U.S. Waterways in the Great Lakes Region and Beyond – Copper Screens and Coatings Provide a Solution to this $500 million Problem.  2009.  Copper Development Association. 30 July.