Valvata Piscinalis Research Articles

Dynamic Energy Budgets as a Basis to Model Population-Level Effects of Zinc-Spiked Sediments in the Gastropod Valvata Piscinalis

Dynamic Energy Budgets as a Basis to Model Population-Level Effects of Zinc-Spiked Sediments in the Gastropod Valvata Piscinalis

Development of rearing and testing protocols for a new freshwater sediment test species: The gastropod Valvata piscinalis

This paper aimed at proposing rearing and testing protocols for Valvata piscinalis, a new potential species for sediment toxicity testing. Such tests were developed since this species reliably represents the bio/ecological characteristics of other gastropods. It may thus be representative of their sensitivity to chemicals. V. piscinalis was successfully cultured in our laboratory for six generations. Cultures provided a high productivity for a low working time and low costs. The tests conditions we proposed seemed to be relevant for the development of reliable tests with this species. Indeed, hatching probability of egg-capsules, as well as embryo, newborn and juvenile survival rates, were close to 100%. Moreover, growth rates and fecundity were significantly higher than in field and in other laboratory studies. Partial life-cycle tests on clean sediments were achieved for various feeding levels to determine survival, growth and reproduction patterns, ad libitum feeding level and life cycle parameters values. Ad libitum feeding levels for newborn, juveniles and adults were 0.1, 0.4 and 0.8 mg Tetramin ®/individual/working day. Growth tests with zinc-spiked sediments provided a no-effect concentration and a lowest effect concentration of respectively 200 and 624 mg zinc/kg dry sediment. Other growth tests on spiked sediments we ran at our laboratory with second, third and fourth instars larvae of Chironomus riparius pointed out that V. piscinalis was more sensible to zinc than the chironomid, which is a routine test species in ecotoxicology. According to these results, V. piscinalis is a promising candidate species for sediment toxicity testing.

Using aquatic macroinvertebrate species traits to build test batteries for sediment toxicity assessment: Accounting for the diversity of potential biological responses to toxicants

An original species-selection method for the building of test batteries is presented. This method is based on the statistical analysis of the biological and ecological trait patterns of species. It has been applied to build a macroinvertebrate test battery for the assessment of sediment toxicity, which efficiently describes the diversity of benthic macroinvertebrate biological responses to toxicants in a large European lowland river. First, 109 potential representatives of benthic communities of European lowland rivers were selected from a list of 479 taxa, considering 11 biological traits accounting for the main routes of exposure to a sediment-bound toxicant and eight ecological traits providing an adequate description of habitat characteristics used by the taxa. Second, their biological and ecological trait patterns were compared using coinertia analysis. This comparison allowed the clustering of taxa into groups of organisms that exhibited similar life-history characteristics, physiological and behavioral features, and similar habitat use. Groups exhibited various sizes (7-35 taxa), taxonomic compositions, and biological and ecological features. Main differences among group characteristics concerned morphology, substrate preferendum and habitat utilization, nutritional features, maximal size, and life-history strategy. Third, the best representatives of the mean biological and ecological characteristics of each group were included in the test battery. The final selection was composed of Chironomus riparius (Insecta: Diptera), Branchiura sowerbyi (Oligochaeta: Tubificidae), Lumbriculus variegatus (Oligochaeta: Lumbriculidae), Valvata piscinalis (Gastropoda: Valvatidae), and Sericostoma personatum (Trichoptera: Sericostomatidae). This approach permitted the biological and ecological variety of the battery to be maximized. Because biological and ecological traits of taxa determine species sensitivity, such maximization should permit the battery to better account for the sensitivity range within a community.

Malacological history of Lake Annecy (France): a comparison of Late Holocene (since 4700 BC) and present mollusc assemblages

An analysis of mollusc assemblages of the Younger Atlantic, the Subboreal and the Subatlantic periods (i. e. since 4700 before Christ) was carried out on the basis of 8 cores taken from the littoral zone of Lake Annecy, France. The structure and composition of these communities remained remarkably stable for several thousand years. The assemblages were dominated by gastropods: Bithynia tentaculata, Valvata piscinalis and V cristata. Of the bivalves, only Pisidium nitidum was well represented. Comparison between fossil and present-day populations in the littoral zone revealed considerable changes in the composition and structure of the communities. Seven species have appeared recently in the lake and current assemblages are dominated by the bivalves of the Sphaeriidae family, since the development of gastropods was greatly limited by substantial regression of vegetation belts during the 20 th century. The dominant species during the second part of the Holocene were replaced by Potamopyrgus antipodarum in the gastropods and Pisidium henslowanum, Dreissena polymorpha and P. moitessierianum in the bivalves. Finally, it is hypothesised that recent climatic warming rather than eutrophication is the most likely reason for the establishment and significant increase of thermophilic species, such as Pisidium moitessierianum in Lake Annecy.

Consequences of a drought on freshwater gastropod and trematode communities

The impact of a drought on freshwater snail and trematode communities was investigated in a lake. Before the drought, 15 gastropod species (Valvatidae, Planorbidae, Lymnaeidae, Ancylidae, Physidae) and 10 trematode species (cercariaeum, xiphidiocercariae, echinostome, furcocercariae, notocotyle, lophocercous) were recorded. The rate of parasitism was 5.13% and there were 11 host species. The 2 major consequences of desiccation were the disappearance of snails, except Valvata piscinalis and Lymnaea peregra, and the absence of trematodes infecting the surviving snails. As soon as favourable conditions were restored, the littoral area was recolonized, first by hygrophilic and amphibious species, second by aquatic species. Nine months after the drought, the gastropod community was restored. Recolonization by the trematodes was delayed compared with that of gastropods. During the study, the overall prevalence was equal to 0.36% and only 4 trematode species and 5 host species were recorded. Because of the great variability of freshwater ecosystems, long-term studies are necessary to understand the dynamics of snail and trematode populations and determine the regulatory effect of parasitism in the field.

Macrozoobenthos abundance and community composition in three lower Rhine floodplain lakes with varying inundation regimes

AbstractThe relative importance of lake inundation regime, littoral substrate and season for macrozoobenthos abundance and community composition was studied in three Lower Rhine floodplain lakes situated along a flood duration gradient. In each lake the macrozoobenthos density, biomass and community composition were determined monthly over one year in two contrasting littoral substrates (sandy‐mineral sediments and clayey‐organic sediments). The influence of the lake inundation regime on the macrozoobenthos abundance was tested against those of littoral substrate and season with a three‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Between‐lake variation in macrozoobenthos abundance was clear for Bivalvia, Ephemeroptera, Heteroptera and Trichoptera. Bivalvia (Pisidium sp.) were most abundant in the frequently flooded lake, Heteroptera [Micronecta sp., Sigarafalleni (Fieber), S. striata (L.)] in the rarely flooded lake and Trichoptera [Mystacides longicornis (L.), M. nigra (L.)] and Ephemeroptera [Caenis horaria (L.), C. luctuosa Burmeister] in the isolated, non‐flooded lake, suggesting an impact of inundation regime on the abundance of these dominant taxa in Lower Rhine floodplain lakes. In each lake the annual average abundance of macrozoobenthos was dominated by Gastropoda [Bithynia tentaculata (L.), Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Gray), Valvata piscinalis (Müller)].Between‐lake variations in the relative densities of macrozoobenthos functional feeding groups suggests an impact of the inundation regime on the macrozoobenthos communities via the availability of nutritional resources. Relative densities of filter‐feeders (e.g. Pisidium sp.) were highest in the frequently flooded lake with its high phytoplankton biomass and poorly developed vegetation. Shredders (e.g. Mystacides sp.) were most numerous in the non‐flooded lake with its well developed aquatic vegetation and low phytoplankton biomass.Within‐lake variations in macrozoobenthos abundance could be attributed to littorai substrate and season. The importance of substrate on macrozoobenthos abundance was most clear for Oligochaeta and Trichoptera. The importance of season on macrozoobenthos abundance was clear for the total macrozoobenthos and for all taxonomic groups, except Oligochaeta. Correlations between the total macrozoobenthos abundance and seasonally fluctuating parameters, i.e. flood pulse duration, water level, water temperature and vegetational coverage in the lakes, suggest that hydrological parameters were most important in the frequently flooded lake, whereas vegetational coverage and water temperature were most important in the isolated, non‐flooded lake.

Habitat disturbance and the stability of freshwater gastropod populations.

The interaction of population stability and habitat permanence has a major influence on the microdistribution of freshwater snails. For two years (February 1980-January 1982), we monitored the abundance of macrophytes and the abundance and size structure of four species of macrophyte-associated freshwater snails in an English pond. Previous work (Lodge, in press) showed that two species, the pulmonate Lymnaea peregra (Mull.) and the prosobranch Valvata piscinalis (Mull.), were associated with cubmersed macrophytes, while two other species, the pulnonate Planorbis vortex (Linn.), and the prosobranch Bithynia tentaculata (Linn.), were associated with emergent macrophytes. A dramatic decline of submersed macrophytes provided a test of the hypotheses that the population stability of Lymnaea and Valvata was 1) high, and 2) an important cause of the association of those two species with submersed macrophytes.When the submersed macrophytes declined in August 1980, >99% of the Lymnaea and about 35% of the Valvata population died. The populations of Planorbis and Bithynia were not reduced. In 1980, Lymnaea and Valvata had simple annual life cycles, but with the regrowth of submersed macrophytes in spring 1981, the Lymnaea and Valvata populations responded with early, high, and repeated reproduction with some overlap of generations. In both years, Planorbis had an annual semelparous life cycle, while Bithynia lived up to 3 years and bred iteroparously.Following the terminology of Connell and Sousa (1983), Lymnaea exhibited low resistance to habitat disturbance but high adjustment following the disturbance. Valvata showed higher resistance than Lymnaea, and also high adjustment. Although the population stability of Planorbis and Bithynia could not be rigorously evaluated, published accounts of those species' life cycles suggest that stability, specially the adjustment component, was low. We suggest that the population stability of the four species is a major determinant of the association of Lymnaea and Valvata with the impermanent macrophyte habitat and that of Planorbis and Bithynia with the permanent macrophyte habitat.

Parasite utilization of a host community: the distribution and occurrence of metacercarial cysts of Echinoparyphium recurvatum (Digenea: Echinostomatidae) in seven species of mollusc at Harting Pond, Sussex

SUMMARYThe occurrence, in September 1979, of Echinoparyphium recurvatum metacercarial cysts in a community of molluscan hosts at Harting Pond, West Sussex, was investigated. The parasite exhibited broad host specificity with all 7 species comprising the molluscan community being infected. There were marked differences, however, in the extent to which each host species was utilized and using the mean number of parasites/ individual mollusc as a parameter of infection the mollusc species may be ranked in descending order of utilization as follows: Sphaerium corneum, Lymnaea peregra, Valvata piscinalis, planorbids, Pisidium subtruncatum and Potamopyrgus jenkinsi. Combination of basic infection data with population estimates for each mollusc species in the study area showed that the bivalve P. subtruncatum and the prosobranch V. piscinalis were the most important hosts because they contained approximately 90% of the total number of cysts. In both of these hosts the cyst population was over-dispersed and the degree of over-dispersion increased with host size. The pattern of second intermediate host utilization is discussed in relation to the likely flow of E. recurvatum between the first intermediate host (L. peregra) and wildfowl definitive hosts at Harting.

Occurrence of the metacercariae of Cotylurus erraticus (Rudolphi, 1809) Szidat, 1928 (Digenea: Strigeidae) in brown trout Salmo trutta L., and rainbow trout S. gairdneri Richardson, 1836, from Hanningfield Reservoir, Essex.

Brown and rainbow trout from Hanningf?eld Reservoir, Essex and rainbow trout from associated raceways were found to be infected with the metacercariae of Cotyluriis erraticus throughout 1968. Both o brown and rainbow trout of age 2+ introduced into the reservoir in the spring became heavily infected with C. erraticus during their first summer in the reservoir. Rainbow trout were more heavily infected than brown trout. Infection increased with age in rainbow trout but this was not apparent in brown trout. The metacercariae are almost completely restricted to the pericardial cavity of the trout. The life-cycle of C. erraticus in Hanningfield possibly involves gulls as final hosts and the gastropod Valvata piscinalis as first intermediate host. C. erraticus has probably been introduced into the reservoir in infected trout from outside sources, or by infected avian final hosts.

LIFE CYCLES OF FOUR FRESHWATER SNAILS IN LIMITED POPULATIONS IN LOCH LOMOND, WITH A DISCUSSION OF INFRASPECIFIC VARIATION

With dredged samples from an isolated bank in Loch Lomond providing standards, data are presented on the interpopulation variations in growth and reproduction which occur in five species of freshwater snails. Infraspecific differences between populations in Planorbis albus and Valvata piscinalis involve only growth rates and the time and intensity of the breeding season. In Physa fontinalis, Lymnaea peregra and Ancylus fluviatilis, interpopulation differences involve the seasonal course of the reproductive cycle (and the number of generations per year), as well as growth rates. A series of the known life cycles of freshwater pulmonates is then considered: two patterns of simple annual cycle, and two patterns each involving a second generation annually, are described, besides certain more exceptional life cycles. All four patterns have been found in different populations of P. fontinalis and L. peregra.Variations in breeding are dependent both on environmental factors, water temperature being most important, and on endogenous causes involving the growth of the snails; variation in mortality may involve environmental limitation. Most interpopulation variations can be environmentally evoked, but some differences seem genetically determined. It is suggested that adaptive plasticity, as found in several aspects of the physiology of these snails, is of fundamental selective value, given the temporal and spatial peculiarities of the freshwater environment.

The Respiration of Freshwater Snails

ABSTRACT The oxygen consumption of some Danish freshwater snails was studied in relation to varying periods of starvation, varying temperatures, weight of animals and oxygen content of the water. The observed respiration is a moderately active metabolism, not a basal one. In the case of Lymnaea palustris and Bithynia leachi a distinct decrease of oxygen consumption has been found in the period 1—24 hr. after collecting; the decrease is supposed to be caused by starvation. In similar experiments Lymnaea pereger, Myxas giutinosa, Bithynia tentaculata, Valvata piscinaEs and possibly Physa fontinalis and Lymnaea auricularia show only a small decrease (or no decrease) of oxygen consumption. During a gradual increase of the temperature (c. 1° C. per hr.) the snails increase their oxygen consumption by 65-90% of the increase expected from Krogh’s curve. In the case of Myxas giutinosa and Physa fontinalis the increase of respiration was nearly the same as that found by Krogh for other animals. The relation of oxygen consumption to body size (live weight) is not a fixed, unchangeable quantity characteristic of every species, but may vary seasonally. A tentative explanation of this variation is given. The oxygen consumption in relation to body size has also an interspecific variation. In prosobranchs the slopes b of the regression lines in a logarithmic coordinate system have in some cases nearly the magnitude 0·67 required by the surface law, but others are higher, e.g. c. 0·95. In pulmonates the relation varies as much as from b = c. 0·45 to b = c. 1·00, i.e. between less than proportional to surface and proportional to weight. The oxygen consumption of the freshwater snails in relation to the sizes of the standard individuals is depicted in a logarithmic co-ordinate system as a belt showing only a slight deviation (Fig. 4, p. 697), i.e. the snails regarded as a whole have a fairly uniform respiration. The regression line of oxygen consumption to sizes of the standard individuals seems to be expressed by a regression line with a slope just under 1·0. Experiments on oxygen consumption in relation to oxygen content of the water have shown that some species (Lymnaea auricularia, Myxas giutinosa, Physa fontinalis, Valvata piscinalis and Bithynia leachi) are able to maintain their consumption with decreasing oxygen content of the water to a critical point of oxygen supply. But in some other species (Lymnaea pereger, L. palustris and Bithynia tentaculata) oxygen consumption decreases immediately in response to a declining oxygen supply. In some freshwater snails (Myxas giutinosa, Lymnaea pereger, Physa fontinalis) the decrease in oxygen consumption in response to a decreasing oxygen supply is not gradual, but shows a steep fall below certain low values of the oxygen content. The only species able to maintain a comparatively high oxygen consumption at low oxygen supply is Bithynia leachi. We wish to express our sincere thanks to the Carlsberg Foundation for grants in support of this study. Thanks are also due to Mr H. T. Stenby, C.E., who made the statistical calculations, and to Dr K. H. Mann, who read and corrected the manuscript.

Description of the Nox-Marine Mollusca

Nineteen species of mollusca were sent to us by Dr. Trechmann, which he had obtained by washing the clay. The species were:— Succinea putris (Linnaeus). Rare. S. pfeifferi Rossmässler? Do. Limnæa pereger (Müller). Common. L. palustris (Müller). Hare. L. truncatula (Müller). Do. L. stagnalis (Linnæus). Do. Planorbis lævis Alder. Common. P. crista (Linnæus). Do. P. umbilicatus (Müller). Rare. P. leucostoma Millet. Do. Valvata piscinalis (Müller). Common. V. cristata Müller. Rare. Unio sp. Do. Anodonta cygnæa (Linnæus). Do. Pisidium amnicum (Müller). Do. P. casertanum (Poli). Common. P. cf. lacustris B. B. Woodward. Do. P. nitidum Jenyns. Do. P. subtruncatum Malm. Do. P. hensloicanum (Sheppard). Do. Since there is an almost total absence of characteristic species, it is difficult to speak definitely as to the age of the bed. They are all living forms, but the abundance of Planorbis lævis shows that we are dealing with a deposit of some antiquity. If we judge from the known facts, the bed may well be the equivalent of the Cray ford Brickearths or rather later. Valvata piscinalis is not known to occur at an earlier horizon, and, although the examples

On some further Discoveries of Flint Implements in the Gravel near Bedford

Abstract Since Mr. Prestwich described the occurrence of flint implements near Bedford (Geol. Soc. Journ. No. 67, p. 366), Mr. Wyatt, Mr. Nail, the Rev. Mr. Hillier, and Mr. Berrill have added seven or eight to the list, from the gravel-pits at Cardington, Harrowden, Biddenham, and Kempston. Mr. J. G. Jeffreys, F.G.S., having examined Mr. Wyatt's further collections of shells from the gravel-pits at Biddenham and Harrowden, has determined seventeen other species besides those noticed by Mr. Prestwich; and among these is Hydrobia marginata (from the Biddenham Pit), which has not been found alive in this country. At Kempston, Mr. Wyatt has examined the sand beneath the gravel (which is destitute of shells), and at 3 feet in the sand (19 feet from the surface) he found Helix, Succinea, Bythinia, Pupa, Planorbis , &c., with a flint implement. The upper gravel contained several flint flakes. Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, F.R.S., F.G.S., having had the shells submitted to him, says,— “I have carefully examined and assorted the shells sent to me by Mr. Wyatt from the ]tarrowden and Biddenham Pits, and I find that they belong to the following species (distinguished by H. & B. respectively):— H. B. Sphærium eorneum, Linn. ( Cyclas cornea of authors.) H.B. Pisidium nitidum, Jenyns. H.B. — Henslowanum, Jenyns. H. — —, monstr. ( P. sinuatum , Normand.) B. Bythinia tentacutata, Müller. H.B. Valvata piscinalis, Müll. B. — cristata, Müll. B. Hydrobia marginata. ( Paludina marginata , Michaud.) B. Succinea putris, Linn. H. — —, dwarf var. resembling S. oblonga , Drap. H. B. Helix hispida, Müll. H.B. — pulehella, Müll. B. — concinna, Jeffr. H.B. Pupa marginata, Drap. H.B. Planorbis glaber, Jeffr. (Ranging from Sweden to Madeira.) H.B. — vortex, Linn. H. — leucostoma, Michaud. ( P. spirorbis of some authors.) B. — nautileus, Lighffoot. B. — marginatus, Müll. H. Limnæa peregra, Müll. H.B. — auricularia, Linn. , var. acuta, Jeffr. H. B. — stagnalis, Linn. (Var. Helix fragilis , Montagu.) H. B. — truncatula, Müll. H. — —, dwarf var. H. — palustris, Drap. H. B. Aneylus fluviatilis, Müll. B. — oblongus, Müll. “The nature and condition of the shells from the Harrowden Pit show that, in all probability, the area formed part of the site of a large lake or piece of fresh water, having a sandy bottom and banks; that it was situated very near an estuary or flat sea-shore; and that a small stream flowed into the lake at its upper end from a hill of considerable eminence. The lake must have had waterplants in it and rushes or flags ( Iris pseudacorus ) at its margin. I assume that all the shells came from one and the same stratum. “The area of the Biddenham Pit did not apparently form part of the site of the same lake as at Harrowden; but it was, in all probability, a smaller piece of water, with more weeds in it. In other respects, as well as in its being the receptacle of a small stream, the conditions appear to have been the same. I take for granted in this case also that all the shells last named came from only one stratum. It may be a question as to whether both these pieces of water existed at the same time. This must in some measure depend on the relative position of the fossiliferous strata in each of the pits in which the shells were found. The occurrence of Hydrobia marginata in the Biddenham Pit is interesting. See Sir Charles Lyell's Paper in the Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society “On the Crag Districts of Norfolk and Suffolk,” and the Appendix to Searles Wood's ‘Monograph on the Crag Mollusea,’ published by the Palæontographical Society. I lately noticed it in the freshwater bed at Mundesley, while in company with Mr. Prestwich. It has never been found alive in this country.”