Abstract
Corbicula fluminea is an aggressive invasive species of bivalve that arrived into the Río de la Plata River between the late 60’s and early 70’s, and dispersed widely throughout the Neotropical region, evidencing a great adaptive flexibility to different environmental conditions. This species is a functional hermaphrodite with larval incubation inside the inner demibranch. Despite its widespread distribution, there are no previous studies of complete gonadal histology and reproductive cycle for this species in the Neotropical region. In this study, the reproductive dynamics of C. fluminea in a temperate region, the Santa Catalina Pampean stream, Argentina, is described. Samples of 20–30 individuals were collected monthly from April 2003-April 2005 and processed using traditional histological techniques. During the two years of this study, seven spawning events were recognized. Three major spawns occurred in spring and summer, and other four minor ones during summer and autumn. Events of oocyte recovery were observed after spawning. A high number of incubating individuals was detected. The results stressed the difficulty of identifying a particular pattern of gamete release and of spawning behaviour in this invasive species, especially when inhabiting an unstable environment.
Highlights
Ecosystems are increasingly being modified by ongoing human-mediated transoceanic biotic exchange [1] as a consequence of global trade, agriculture, aquaculture, recreational activities and transportation
Corbicula fluminea is an aggressive invasive species of bivalve that arrived into the Rıo de la Plata River between the late 60’s and early 70’s, and dispersed widely throughout the Neotropical region, evidencing a great adaptive flexibility to different environmental conditions
Since C. fluminea is an aggressive invasive species that can withstand different climates and environmental conditions, reaching high population densities, the aim of the present study was to describe the reproductive dynamics of Corbicula fluminea, establishing its histological gonadal cycle and spawning periods in a population from a Pampean stream and to compare its results with those of previous studies
Summary
Ecosystems are increasingly being modified by ongoing human-mediated transoceanic biotic exchange [1] as a consequence of global trade, agriculture, aquaculture, recreational activities and transportation. The Asiatic clam Corbicula fluminea (Muller, 1774), is an invasive species that has colonized aquatic ecosystems worldwide [2], in some cases with great ecological and economic impact, acting as an ecosystem engineer [3]. This species native to South-eastern China, Korea and South-eastern Russia [4] has dispersed to the Americas, Africa and Europe [5], encompassing a great diversity of freshwater ecosystems [6].
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