Annual gametogenic cycle of the freshwater pearl mussel, Lamellidens marginalis (Lamarck, 1819) collected from a perennial lentic habitat of Bangladesh

Abstract

ABSTRACTWe investigated the annual gametogenic phenology of the freshwater pearl mussel, Lamellidens marginalis (Lamarck, 1819), collected from a lentic habitat at Mymensingh, Bangladesh, using biometry and histology through monthly sampling from August 2015 to July 2016. After biometric measurements, thin slices of dorso-ventral sections were cut from the middle of the mussels for histology to determine sex and level of gonadal maturation. The condition index (CI) ranged from 0.64 (March) to 0.99 (January) over the study period. The CI peaked three times (January, April and July) indicating that the mussels were ripe during these months and subsequent decreases in CI indicated spawning, which was consistent with histology. Both males and females exhibited similar patterns in terms of gonadal development, maturation and spawning activity. It was confirmed that natural populations of L. marginalis spawn throughout the year with remarkable temporal variations, except during December when the surface water temperature reaches annual minima (16.5°C). Highest spawning activity of L. marginalis was noted during February–March, May and July–November. The data obtained in the present study could be useful for the conservation managers of this commercial species by allowing harvesting of better quality mussels to be timed without interrupting major spawning activity.