History of Dreissena research and the ICAIS gateway to aquatic invasions research

Alexander Karatayev,Renata Claudi,Frances Lucy

doi:10.3391/ai.2012.7.1.001

Alexander Karatayev, Renata Claudi + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3391/ai.2012.7.1.001

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Abstract

Research on the ecology and impacts of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) has developed in parallel with the long history of their spread across Europe and to North America. There is less scientific knowledge however about the quagga mussel (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis). The recent spread of both zebra and quagga mussels to the Western states of the USA, has spurred on dreissenid research. The 17th International Conference on Aquatic Invasive Species (ICAIS), was held in San Diego, California in September 2010. This special edition of Aquatic Invasions includes topical research presented at ICAIS and also extra subsequent papers on ecology, risk assessment and control of various aquatic invasive species in different parts of the globe.

Highlights

Since the initial description of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas)) in 1771 and the quagga mussel (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis Andrusov) in 1897, these two Ponto Caspian invasive species have been studied intensively both in Europe and more recently in North America, following their introduction to the Great Lakes in the 1980s (Mills et al 1993; Carlton 2008)
Both Dreissena species were introduced to North America in the 1980s (Mills et al 1993; Carlton 2008) spreading steadily outwards from the Great Lakes (USGS 2011), they were not reported in the western United States until the new millennium
Quagga mussels were discovered in Lake Mead, Nevada in January 2007 and zebra mussels were reported from San Justo Reservoir in central California in 2008 (USGS 2011)

Summary

Introduction

Since the initial description of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas)) in 1771 and the quagga mussel (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis Andrusov) in 1897, these two Ponto Caspian invasive species have been studied intensively both in Europe and more recently in North America, following their introduction to the Great Lakes in the 1980s (Mills et al 1993; Carlton 2008). The recent rapid spread of both Dreissena species in Europe and North America and the subsequent impacts created by these species instigated an exponential increase in Dreissena research efforts, resulting in hundreds of publications on the vectors and mechanisms of spread, environmental limits, biology, physiology, ecological and economic impacts and control methods of these invaders.

Results

Conclusion