Perna viridis

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Asian green mussel
Pviridiscolor.PNG
Perna viridis showing the byssus, the downward-pointing beak, and the dark green color that becomes brownish towards the umbo
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Order: Mytilida
Family: Mytilidae
Genus: Perna
Species:
P. viridis
Binomial name
Perna viridis

Perna viridis, known as the Asian green mussel, is an economically important mussel, a bivalve belonging to the family Mytilidae. It is harvested for food but is also known to harbor toxins [ citation needed ] and cause damage to submerged structures such as drainage pipes. It is native in the Asia-Pacific region but has been introduced in the Caribbean, and in the waters around Japan, North America, and South America. [1]

Contents

Description

Perna viridis Perna viridis 001.jpg
Perna viridis

Perna viridis ranges from 80 to 100 millimetres (3 to 4 in) in length and may occasionally reach 165 millimetres (6 in). Its shell ends in a downward-pointing beak. The smooth periostracum is dark green, becoming increasingly brownish towards its point of attachment (umbo), where it is lighter. Younger mussels are bright green and that becomes darker as it ages. [2] The shell's interior has a pale-blue sheen. [3] The mussel has a large mobile foot which it uses to climb vertically should it be covered by sediments. It also produces byssus to help it attach to its substrate. [4]

Perna canaliculus and Perna perna are two similar species, native to the waters of New Zealand and Africa respectively. [5]

Habitat and distribution

The Asian green mussel is found in the coastal waters of the Indo-Pacific region. However the mussels are introduced to other areas as an invasive species via boat hulls and water ballasts. [1]

The mussel inhabits estuarine habitats and is found in densities as high as 35,000 individuals per square meter on any submerged marine object. Although vivid green in appearance, the mussels are shrouded with overgrowth and are often hard to find. The mussels live in waters that are 11–32 °C (52–90 °F) with a wide-ranging salinity of about 18-33 ppt. [3] P. viridis grows fastest at 2 metres (2 yards) below the surface, in high salinity and a high concentration of phytoplankton, although it can tolerate a range of salinity and turbid water. [5]

Ecology and life history

A group of Perna viridis attached on a rocky substrate Pviridisinsubstrate.PNG
A group of Perna viridis attached on a rocky substrate

The Asian green mussel has separate sexes and fertilizes externally. There are a very few functional hermaphrodites (<0.1%). The mussel's sexual development was shown to be affected by temperature. [6] Spawning ordinarily occurs twice a year between early spring and late autumn; however, the mussels found in the Philippines and Thailand are known to spawn all year round. [3] The zygote transforms to a larva 7–8 hours after fertilization. The larvae stay in the water column for 10–12 days before undergoing metamorphosis into a juvenile and settling onto a surface. [5] The juveniles become sexually mature when they are 15–30 millimetres (121+14 in) in length, a size reached within 2–3 months. Growth is influenced by the availability of food, temperature, water movement, [3] the mussel's age, and caging. Cage culturing can prevent entry of predators and barnacles increases marketability but slows down the mussel's growth rate. [7] [ clarification needed ] The adult can live to up 2–3 years. Due to its fast growth, it can outcompete other fouling organisms and cause changes in marine ecological relationships. [3]

This mussel is a filter feeder that feeds on phytoplankton, zooplankton and suspended organic materials. They are eaten by fishes, crustaceans, seastars, octopuses and humans. [3]

Importance to humans

A worker in Chonburi, Thailand, cutting the beards and removing barnacles from Asian green mussels h`yaemngphuu hoi maeng phu 4.jpg
A worker in Chonburi, Thailand, cutting the beards and removing barnacles from Asian green mussels

P. viridis is harvested in the Indo-Pacific region as a food source due to its fast growth. However, it can harbor deadly Saxitoxin produced by the dinoflagellates that it feeds upon.[ citation needed ] It can also be used as a biomonitor to indicate pollution caused by heavy metals, organochlorides and petroleum products. [1] Mussels that are in contaminated areas have labile lysosomal membranes due to metal-induced stress. [8]

This mussel is also notorious for clogging water pipes used by industrial complexes and fouling marine equipment. It has fouled the intake condenser tunnels of power plants in India and Florida and navigational buoys in China where their biomass has grown to up to 72 kilograms per square metre (15 lb/sq ft). [2] Chlorination of pipes and using high velocity water was shown to decrease or remove P. viridis population. [1] However, the mussel excretes ammonia which reacts with the chlorine to form monochloramine, a weaker disinfectant than chlorine. Ammonia can also accelerate the corrosion of copper-based alloys found in the water pipes. [9] Heat treatment is also being considered as an alternative to chlorination due to the safety and environmental concerns raised by the latter method. [10]

As an invasive species, the mollusk is viewed as threat to oyster fisheries in several nations where it has been introduced. It might also displace native mussels by introducing harmful parasites and diseases. [2]

The green mussel is edible and used widely in several Asian cuisines.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biofouling</span> Growth of marine organisms on surfaces

Biofouling or biological fouling is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals where it is not wanted on surfaces such as ship and submarine hulls, devices such as water inlets, pipework, grates, ponds, and rivers that cause degradation to the primary purpose of that item. Such accumulation is referred to as epibiosis when the host surface is another organism and the relationship is not parasitic. Since biofouling can occur almost anywhere water is present, biofouling poses risks to a wide variety of objects such as boat hulls and equipment, medical devices and membranes, as well as to entire industries, such as paper manufacturing, food processing, underwater construction, and desalination plants.

<i>Mytilopsis sallei</i> Species of bivalve

Mytilopsis sallei, the black-striped mussel, is a small marine bivalve mollusc in the family Dreissenidae, the false mussels.

<i>Perna canaliculus</i> Species of bivalve

Perna canaliculus, the New Zealand green-lipped mussel, also known as the New Zealand mussel, the greenshell mussel, kuku, and kutai, is a bivalve mollusc in the family Mytilidae. P. canaliculus has economic importance as a cultivated species in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mytilidae</span> Family of bivalves

Mytilidae are a family of small to large marine and brackish-water bivalve molluscs in the order Mytilida. One of the genera, Limnoperna, even inhabits freshwater environments. Mytilidae, which contains some 52 genera, is the only extant family within the order Mytilida.

<i>Perna perna</i> Species of bivalve

Perna perna, the brown mussel, is an economically important mussel, a bivalve mollusc belonging to the family Mytilidae. It is harvested as a food source but is also known to harbor toxins and cause damage to marine structures. It is native to the waters of Africa, Europe, and South America and was introduced in the waters of North America.

<i>Lithophaga lithophaga</i> Species of bivalve

Lithophaga lithophaga, also known as date shell or date mussel, is a species of Bivalvia belonging to the family Mytilidae.

<i>Mytilopsis leucophaeata</i> Species of bivalve

Mytilopsis leucophaeata is a species of small bivalve mollusc in the false mussel family, Dreissenidae. It is commonly known as Conrad's false mussel or the dark false mussel.

<i>Choromytilus meridionalis</i> Species of bivalve

Choromytilus meridionalis, the black mussel, is a species of bivalve. It is a marine mollusc in the family Mytilidae. They are part of the family Mollusca which is the second-largest phylum of invertebrates with around 85,000 species. In this article, we will be discussing the taxonomy, morphology, ecology, reproduction, and distribution of Choromytilus meridionalis.

<i>Geukensia demissa</i> Species of bivalve

Geukensia demissa is a species of mussel, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Mytilidae, the true mussels. This species is native to the Atlantic coast of North America. The common names for this species include ribbed mussel, Atlantic ribbed marsh mussel and ribbed horsemussel. However, the common name ribbed mussel is also used for the Southern Hemisphere mussel Aulacomya atra. The appearance of the shell is grooved and oval in shape. The interior of this mussel is tinted purple

<i>Perna</i> (bivalve) Genus of bivalves

Perna is a genus of mussels, marine bivalve molluscs in the family Mytilidae.

<i>Ulva linza</i> Species of seaweed

Ulva linza is a green alga in the family Ulvaceae that can be found in British Isles.

<i>Limnoperna fortunei</i> Golden mussel, medium sized, biofouler

Limnoperna fortunei, the golden mussel, is a medium-sized freshwater bivalve mollusc of the family Mytilidae. The native range of the species is China, but it has accidentally been introduced to South America and several Asian countries where it has become an invasive species. It is considered to be an ecosystem engineer because it alters the nature of the water and the bottom habitats of lakes and rivers and modifies the associated invertebrate communities. It also has strong effects on the properties of the water column, modifying nutrient proportions and concentrations, increasing water transparency, decreasing phytoplankton and zooplankton densities, on which it feeds, and enhancing the growth of aquatic macrophytes. Because mussels attach to hard substrata, including the components of industrial, water-treatment and power plants, they have become a major biofouling problem in the areas invaded.

<i>Trichomya</i> Genus of bivalves

Trichomya is a monotypic genus of marine bivalve molluscs in the family Mytilidae, the mussels. The only species is Trichomya hirsuta which is endemic to southern and eastern Australia. Its common names include the hairy mussel, the greenling and the kelp greenling.

<i>Mytilus unguiculatus</i> Species of bivalve

Mytilus unguiculatus, common name the Korean mussel or the hard-shelled mussel, is a species of mussel, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mytilidae. This species is heavily exploited as a food item via mariculture in Korea and in China. It is also a typical macrofouling organism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gigantidas tangaroa</span> Species of bivalve

Gigantidas tangaroa is a species of deep-sea mussel, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Mytilidae, the mussels.

<i>Mytella charruana</i> Species of bivalve

Mytella charruana is a bivalve, commonly known as the charru mussel. This species was discovered in Central and South America and by Alcide d'Orbigny, a French naturalist, in 1842. They are less than an inch long (2.5 cm), and range from brown to black in color.

<i>Modiolus capax</i> Species of bivalve

Modiolus capax, common name fat horsemussel, is a species of "horse mussel", a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mytilidae, the mussels. It was first described to science by American malacologist Timothy Abbott Conrad in 1837. The type specimen was collected in San Diego by Thomas Nuttall.

<i>Brachidontes pharaonis</i> Species of bivalve

Brachidontes pharaonis is a species of mussel from the family Mytilidae. It is native to the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, and has colonised the Mediterranean Sea where it is regarded as an invasive species.

<i>Arcuatula senhousia</i> Species of mollusc

Arcuatula senhousia, commonly known as the Asian date mussel, Asian mussel or bag mussel, is a small saltwater mussel, a marine bivalve mollusk species in the family Mytilidae, the mussels. Other common names for this species include: the Japanese mussel, Senhouse's mussel, the green mussel, and the green bagmussel. It is harvested for human consumption in China.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Asian Green Mussel". Global Invasive Species Database. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  2. 1 2 3 Florida Caribbean Science Center (2001-05-15). "NONINDIGENOUS SPECIES INFORMATION BULLETIN: Green mussel, Perna viridis (Linnaeus" (PDF). U.S. Geological Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2004-07-20. Retrieved 2008-04-25.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Asian Green Mussel" (PDF). National Introduced Pest Marine Information System. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2003-07-29. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  4. Seed, R; C. A. Richardson (15 June 1999). "Evolutionary traits in Perna viridis (Linnaeus) and Septifer virgatus (Wiegmann) (Bivalvia: Mytilidae)". Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology. 239 (2): 273–287. doi:10.1016/S0022-0981(99)00043-X.
  5. 1 2 3 "Perna viridis (Linnaeus, 1758)". Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission. Archived from the original on 2007-07-08. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  6. Lee, S.Y. (1988). "The Reproductive Cycle and Sexuality of the Green Mussel Perna Viridis (L.) (Bivalvia: Mytilacea) in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong". Journal of Molluscan Studies. 54 (3): 317–323. doi:10.1093/mollus/54.3.317.
  7. Marine Biological Association of Hong Kong; Brian Morton (1986). Asian Marine Biology. Hong Kong University Press. p. 111. ISBN   962-209-187-3 . Retrieved 2008-04-26.
  8. Nicholson, Shaun (January 1999). "Cytological and Physiological Biomarker Responses from Green Mussels, Perna viridis (L.) Transplanted to Contaminated Sites in Hong Kong Coastal Waters". Marine Pollution Bulletin. 39 (1–12): 261–268. Bibcode:1999MarPB..39..261N. doi:10.1016/S0025-326X(98)90189-8.
  9. MASILAMONI, J. GUNASINGH; J. AZARIAH; K. NANDAKUMAR; K. SAMEUL JESUDOSS; K. K. SATPATHY; K.V.K. NAIR (2001). "Excretory Products of Green Mussel Perna viridis L. and their Implications on Power Plant Operation" (PDF). Turk J Zool. 25: 117–125. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  10. Rajagopal, S; Venugopalan, V P; Azariah, J; Nair, K V K (1995). "Response of the green mussel Perna viridis (L.) to heat treatment in relation to power plant biofouling control". Biofouling. 8 (4): 313–330. doi:10.1080/08927019509378284. Archived from the original on 2009-08-20. Retrieved 2008-04-26.