Water and sediment toxicity of freshwater mussels from population crashes of Asiatic clams
- Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ., Blacksburg, VA (United States)
The Clinch River watershed in Virginia contains one of the most diverse communities of freshwater bivalves or unionids in North America. These communities are becoming depleted over the past few decades due to various point (industrial, municipal) and nonpoint (roadside and agricultural runoff) discharges. By the latter 1980`s, the Asiatic clam (Corbicula fluminea) had invaded most reaches of this system and may be becoming a contributing factor to the demise of native mussels by the natural release of toxic ammonia from dense population crashes during late summer, low flow conditions. When densities surpassed 1,500 clams/m{sup 2}, crashes resulting in >99% mortality have been observed in various areas of the river. Total ammonia release from dying clams reached and sustained 70 mg/L for several days in laboratory artificial stream experiments. These ammonia levels resulted in acute toxicity and reproductive chronic impairment to Daphnia magna in 10-day sediment toxicity tests. Pediveliger larvae of Corbicula were acutely sensitive (48 hr LC{sub 50}) to 1.72 mg/L total ammonia (O.05 mg/L unionized), mortality was 100% to juvenile and adult clams in 9 to 13 days at 16.1 mg/L total (0.74 mg/L unionized ammonia). Mussel glochidia were sensitive to 24-hr ammonia exposures (LC{sub 50} = 3.29 and 0.11 mg/L as total and unionized ammonia, respectively). Juvenile and adult mussels are predicted to be less sensitive members of the unionid life cycle as observed from earlier studies involving copper toxicity in the Clinch River.
- OSTI ID:
- 37449
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9410273--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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