Villosa iris

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Villosa iris
Villosa iris.jpg
Status TNC blank.svg
Unranked (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Order: Unionida
Family: Unionidae
Genus: Villosa
Species:
V. iris
Binomial name
Villosa iris
(Lea, 1829)
Synonyms

Unio irisLea, 1829

Villosa iris, the rainbow mussel or rainbow-shell, is a species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. In 2018, Watters proposed to move the species into a new genus, Cambarunio . [1] [2]

Contents

Reproduction

Newly metamorphosed rainbow mussels (Villosa iris). Rainbow mussels metamorphosed 17 May 2023.png
Newly metamorphosed rainbow mussels (Villosa iris).

All Unionidae are known to use the gills, fins, or skin of a host fish for nutrients during the larval glochidia stage. Female villosa iris attract host fish by imitating a crayfish. Elongate papillae on the mantle margin resemble crayfish antennae, legs, and eyes. They also mimic crayfish behavior, moving the papillae [ disambiguation needed ] independently like legs, and use "tail tucking" motions. [3] Juvenile mussels bury themselves in the sediment just below its surface and feed on interstitial bacteria and bacteria-sized particles including algae. [4]

Distribution

This species is widely distributed throughout the St. Lawrence, upper Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, and Cumberland River drainage basins. [5]

Conservation status

Villosa iris is the focus of conservation concern in areas like Ontario, Illinois, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. [1] In Canada, V. iris is listed as a species of Special Concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and under the Species at Risk Act, [6] having been downgraded to this status in 2019 after its initial listing as Endangered in 2013. [7] In the United States, the Government of Wisconsin lists it as endangered. [8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 NatureServe (7 April 2023). "Cambarunio iris". NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data accessed through NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia: NatureServe. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  2. G. Thomas Watters (2017). "A Preliminary Review of the Nominal Genus Villosa of Freshwater Mussels (Bivalvia, Unionidae) in North America". Visaya. Conchology, Inc. ISBN   978-3-939767-86-2. Supplement 10.
  3. "Villosa iris (Lea). The rainbow-shell". Unio Gallery.
  4. Yeager, M. M.; Cherry, D. S. & Neves, R. J. (1994). "Feeding and burrowing behaviors of juvenile rainbow mussels, Villosa iris (Bivalvia:Unionidae)". Journal of the North American Benthological Society. 13 (2): 217–222. doi:10.2307/1467240. JSTOR   1467240. S2CID   87037556.
  5. "Home".
  6. Canada, Environment and Climate Change (2016-08-10). "Rainbow (Villosa iris): COSEWIC assessment and status report 2015". aem. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  7. "Rainbox (Villosa iris)". Species at risk public registry. Government of Canada. 2 February 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  8. "Rainbow Shell (Villosa iris)". dnr.wi.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-04.