Abstract
In order to evaluate the effects of the golden mussel Limnoperna fortunei on phytoplankton density and composition and nutrient recycling we conducted a 24 h filtration experiment in Rio Tercero Reservoir (Argentina) using four 400 L mesocosms, two of them stocked with 1700-1800 adult mussels each, and two controls (without mussels). Nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton composition and density were evaluated at 0, 3, 6, 12, and 24 h. Estimated filtration rates were 1.48-3.14 mL mg DW -1 h -1 . Grazing pressure by the mussel was not associated with algal taxonomy or cell size. After 24 h, L. fortunei removed 84% of the particulate nitrogen, and 49% of the particulate phosphorus. Nutrient regeneration was very significant as well: ammonium was produced at a rate of 3 μM NH3g DW -1 h -1 , whereas production of phosphates was 0.42 μM PO4g DW -1 h -1 . It is concluded that the impact of L. fortunei on phytoplankton and nutrient cycling can be as significant as that reported for another invasive bivalve - the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha in Europe and North America, but the overall effect of this impact on the biota may differ strongly under different environmental settings.
Highlights
Between 1965 and 1990, the invasive bivalve Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker, 1857), the golden mussel, native to mainland China, was unintentionally introduced in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, and Argentina (Pastorino et al 1993; Ricciardi 1998)
Extensive research has demonstrated that zebra mussels change existing habitat and provide new habitat for other organisms; they affect trophic interactions and the availability of food for both pelagic and benthic species, and they influence the rates of other processes including mineralization of nutrients, oxygen availability, sedimentation rates, and dynamics of pollutants (Karatayev et al 1997)
After 24 h, Limnoperna removed 89% of the particulate N and 49% of the particulate P from the water column. Drops in these particulates were accompanied by strong increases in phosphates and NH3, as a result of the metabolism of the mussels
Summary
Between 1965 and 1990, the invasive bivalve Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker, 1857), the golden mussel, native to mainland China, was unintentionally introduced in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, and Argentina (Pastorino et al 1993; Ricciardi 1998). In many biological and ecological aspects L. fortunei resembles the European and North American invasive pest mussel Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771). Both are dioecious and have similar sizes, grow rapidly, attach to hard substrata by means of a strong byssus, and are rapidly dispersed by their planktonic larvae (Karatayev et al 2007). It is highly probable that ecological shifts as important as those that took place in the European and North American areas colonized by the zebra mussel are underway in Río de la Plata basin rivers, lakes and reservoirs
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