| Lampsilis abrupta | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Unionida |
| Family: | Unionidae |
| Genus: | Lampsilis |
| Species: | L. abrupta |
| Binomial name | |
| Lampsilis abrupta Say, 1831 | |
Lampsilis abrupta, the pink mucket or pink mucket pearly mussel, is a species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. This species is endemic to the United States.
The pink mucket is a rounded, slightly elongated mussel with a thick, inflated, and smooth shell, which is usually yellow-brown in color. [2] It can be found on the bottoms of various bodies of water, among gravel and cobble. It can be found in water one inch to five feet in depth. [3] The mussel can live up to fifty years, but it rarely reaches this age now. The pink mucket has been a federally endangered species since the year 1976. [4]
The pink mucket reproduces in a similar manner to most other freshwater mussels. It requires a stable and undisturbed habitat. [5] The male releases sperm into the current, and the female siphons it into its gill chamber, where the eggs are then fertilized. [2] Once the eggs have gone through this process, they mature into larvae called (glochidia) and are discharged into the water. [2] The glochidium lodges in the gills of a host fish, such as black bass and walleye. [3] After the larval mussel spends a few days to weeks attached to the host it becomes a juvenile mussel and drops to the substrate. [2] The pink mucket spawns from August to September, and releases their glochidia the following year from May to June. [3]
At one time, the pink mucket was present in twenty-six rivers in the Midwest and eastern United States. [3] The building of dams and reservoirs caused the flooding of the habitat, affecting both the mussel and the host fish. [5] Deteriorating water quality and siltation also affects mussel populations. [2] Other practices, such as dredging, gravel mining, removal of trees, and undergrowth along the stream bank, and non-point source pollution from agriculture and urban areas, have contributed to the decline in the pink mucket as well. [3]
Mussels are filter feeders that pump water through their siphons to collect food particles from the water. They gather essential nutrients and remove unwanted toxins from the water. [3] Depending on the state, many organizations and conservationists, are making attempts to recover the pink mucket. Protection and management of the pink mucket is clearly related to managing the habitat and the water quality of the large rivers it depends upon. [2] For instance, some landowners report mussel poaching by calling their local conservation agents. [2] Others have already taken steps to recover the pink mucket. The state of Kentucky, where the pink mucket is endangered, has created the Kentucky’s Wildlife Action Plan. This plan was developed by the state to help create priority conservation actions for the aquatic and wildlife that have become threatened and endangered species. [6] In July 2007, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources reared pink mucket mussels at the Center for Mollusk Conservation and released eleven hundred pink muckets in the Green River. [6] The state will continue to work on the endangered species for the next several years in order to increase and even augment the current populations of mussels. The states of Tennessee and Alabama have designated mussel sanctuaries in parts of the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers and have also successfully reproduced populations at these locations. [7] The recovery of the pink mucket is expected to improve over the years. [6]
The Green River is a 384-mile-long (618 km) tributary of the Ohio River that rises in Lincoln County in south-central Kentucky. Tributaries of the Green River include the Barren River, the Nolin River, the Pond River and the Rough River. The river was named after Nathanael Greene, a general of the American Revolutionary War.
The dwarf wedgemussel is an endangered species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels.
The shovelnose sturgeon is the smallest species of freshwater sturgeon native to North America. It is often called "hackleback", "sand sturgeon", or "switchtail." Switchtail refers to the long filament found on the upper lobe of the caudal fin. Shovelnose sturgeon are the most abundant sturgeon, found in the Missouri River and Mississippi River systems, and the only commercially fished sturgeon in the United States of America.
The freshwater pearl mussel is an endangered species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusc in the family Margaritiferidae.
The cracking pearlymussel is an endangered species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae.
Unionida is a monophyletic order of freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve molluscs. The order includes most of the larger freshwater mussels, including the freshwater pearl mussels. The most common families are the Unionidae and the Margaritiferidae. All have in common a larval stage that is temporarily parasitic on fish, nacreous shells, high in organic matter, that may crack upon drying out, and siphons too short to permit the animal to live deeply buried in sediment.
The Appalachian elktoe is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. It is native to the United States, where it is known only from North Carolina and Tennessee.
Cumberlandia monodonta is a freshwater mussel endemic to the United States. Currently, C. monodonta is listed as an endangered species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Lampsilis is a genus of freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve mollusks in the family Unionidae, the river mussels.
Lampsilis cardium is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. It is known commonly as the plain pocketbook. It is widespread in eastern North America, where it is native to the Mississippi River and Great Lakes drainage systems.
Lampsilis dolabraeformis is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. It is known commonly as the Altamaha pocketbook. It is endemic to Georgia in the United States, where it is known only from the Altamaha River system.
Lampsilis higginsii is a rare species of freshwater mussel known as Higgins' eye pearly mussel or simply Higgins' eye. It is endemic to the United States, where it occurs in the upper Mississippi River and the drainages of some of its tributaries. It is threatened by the introduced zebra mussel. Lapsilis higginsii is a federally listed endangered species.
Hamiota perovalis, the orangenacre mucket or orange-nacre mucket, is a species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels.
Lampsilis powellii is a rare species of freshwater mussel known by the common name Arkansas fatmucket. It is endemic to Arkansas in the United States, where it occurs in the Ouachita, Saline, and Caddo River systems. It is one of two mussels endemic to Arksansas, the other being speckled pocketbook. It is a federally listed threatened species of the United States.
Lampsilis rafinesqueana, the Neosho mucket or Neosho pearly mussel, is a species of North American freshwater mussel endemic to Arkansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas.
Lampsilis streckeri, the speckled pocketbook, is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. It is endemic to Arkansas in the United States, where it is threatened by habitat loss. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Leptodea leptodon, the scaleshell mussel or scale shell, is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. This aquatic bivalve mollusk has disappeared from much of its historical range. It is endemic to the United States, where it is now present in four or fewer states; it is only found with any regularity in Missouri. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Popenaias popeii, common name the Texas hornshell, is a species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels.
