Freshwater Mussel Ecology: A Multifactor Approach to Distribution and Abundance
David Strayer
Abstract
Pearly mussels (Unionoidea) live in lakes, rivers, and streams around the world. These bivalves play important roles in freshwater ecosystems and were once both culturally and economically valuable as sources of food, pearls, and mother-of-pearl. Today, however, hundreds of species of these mussels are extinct or endangered. This book provides a critical synthesis of the factors that control the distribution and abundance of pearly mussels. Using empirical analyses and models, it assesses the effects of dispersal, habitat quality, fish host availability, adequate food, predators, and parasites ... More
Pearly mussels (Unionoidea) live in lakes, rivers, and streams around the world. These bivalves play important roles in freshwater ecosystems and were once both culturally and economically valuable as sources of food, pearls, and mother-of-pearl. Today, however, hundreds of species of these mussels are extinct or endangered. This book provides a critical synthesis of the factors that control the distribution and abundance of pearly mussels. Using empirical analyses and models, it assesses the effects of dispersal, habitat quality, fish host availability, adequate food, predators, and parasites. The book also addresses conservation issues that apply to other inhabitants of fresh waters around the globe and other pressing issues in contemporary ecology.
Keywords:
mussels,
pearly mussels,
mussel ecology,
freshwater ecosystems,
ecology,
conservation,
bivalves,
pearls,
mother-of-pearl
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2008 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780520255265 |
| Published to California Scholarship Online: March 2012 |
DOI:10.1525/california/9780520255265.001.0001 |
