Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 1 15(2): 103- 109
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2006. Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 1 15(2): 103- 109 CURRENT STATUS OF FRESHWATER MUSSELS (ORDER UNIONOIDA) IN THE WABASH RIVER DRAINAGE OF INDIANA Brant E. Fisher: Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Atterbury Fish & Wildlife Area, 7970 South Rowe Street, P.O. Box 3000, Edinburgh, Indiana 46124 USA ABSTRACT. Seventy-five species of freshwater mussels (Order Unionoida) have historically inhabited the Wabash River drainage of Indiana. Nine of these species have always been restricted to Wabash River tributaries and never maintained reproducing populations in the mainstem Wabash River. Of the 66 re- maining species, 18 are currently considered extirpated from the entire drainage and 18 maintain repro- ducing populations only in Wabash River tributaries. Currently, 30 species maintain reproducing popula- tions in the mainstem Wabash River, which represents a 55% reduction in its freshwater mussel fauna. To date, the entire Wabash River drainage of Indiana has seen a 24% reduction in its freshwater mussel fauna. Keywords: Freshwater mussels, Wabash River The freshwater mussel (Order Unionoida) mussels in the Wabash River drainage of Il- fauna of the Wabash River drainage has been linois. well documented historically. Stein (1881) at- Many of the larger tributaries of the Wa- tempted the first complete list of the 'mollus- bash River have also had recent survey work cous fauna of Indiana,' and referenced many completed (from upstream to downstream): species as inhabiting the Wabash River and its Salamonie River (Ecological Specialists. Inc. tributaries. Call (1894, 1896, 1897, 1900), 1995), Mississinewa River (Ecological Spe- cialists, Inc. River (upper Blatchley & Daniels (1903), Daniels (1903, 1995), Eel Wabash River) (Henschen 1987). Tippecanoe River 1915), and Goodrich & van der Schalie (1944) (Cummings Berlocher 1990: Cummings et continued to add to the knowledge of Indi- & al. 1992; Ecological Specialists. Inc. 1993, ana's mollusca fauna and provided invaluable 1998; Ball & Schoenung 1996: Common- information on those species found in the Wa- wealth Biomonitoring 2005: EnviroScience bash River drainage. 2006), Middle Fork Wildcat (Henschen 1990). Three important Wabash River studies were small streams of Tippecanoe Count) (Mvers- completed during the 1960s and 1970s. Meyer Kinzie et al. 2001). Jordan Creek (Szafoni et (1968) and Krumholz et al. (1970) studied the al. 2000), Sugar Creek (middle Wabash River commercially valuable species of the Wabash tributary) (Lewis 1991). Brouilletts Creek and White rivers. Clark (1976) inventoried (Tiemann 2005). East Fork White River drain- mussels from the lower Wabash River. age (Cummings et al. 1992: Ball & Schoen- Between 1987 and 1991, Cummings et al. ung 1996; Harmon 1998: Clarke et al. L999; (1992) sampled 100 sites in the Wabash River EnviroScience 2006). West Fork White River drainage, including 53 sites on the mainstem drainage (Cummings et al. 1992; Henschen Wabash River. Several of the lower Wabash 1993. 1995; L. Bow ley. Muncie Bureau of River sites sampled by Cummings et al. Water Quality pers. comm.). and Patoka River (1992) were re-sampled in 1996 by Frankland (Ecological Specialists. Inc. 2001). Figure 1 (1996). Ball & Schoenung (1996) and illustrates the recent collections cited here. EnviroScience intensively L (2006) sampled which include samples from l )S~"-2004. freshwater mussels at several locations in the In addition to this information, the Wildlife upper mainstem Wabash River. Page et al. Diversity Section. Division of Fish and Wild- (1992) and Cummings & Mayer (1997) pro- life. Indiana Department of Natural Resourc- vide information on the status of freshwater es, collected freshwater mussel information 1 03 104 PROCEEDINGS OF THE INDIANA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE . 2. Figure 1 —Freshwater mussel sample locations Figure —Freshwater mussel sample locations reported from cited literature for the Wabash River reported from cited literature and collected by the drainage, Indiana (1987-2004). Wildlife Diversity Section, Indiana Department of Natural Resources, for the Wabash River drainage, Indiana (1987-2006). from nearly 900 sites within the Wabash River drainage between 1995-2006 (Fig. 2). This in- formation, along with the previously cited sur- veys, was used to determine the current status the stream bottom was searched with hands or of freshwater mussel species within the Wa- shoed-feet. bash River drainage of Indiana. Live freshwater mussels were identified on- METHODS site and returned; representative dead shell material was retained from most locations. Several different collecting methods were Species lists indicating the best condition of used in the previously cited surveys; the in- shell material (live, fresh dead, weathered dividual reports should be reviewed to deter- dead, or subfossil) encountered were prepared mine the specific methods used by those re- for all sampled locations. All shell material searchers. retained from our sampling efforts is currently An informal sampling design (Strayer & vouchered at the Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Smith 2003) was utilized for most of our sur- Area, Edinburgh, Indiana. veys within the Wabash River drainage. Sam- specific pling locations were chosen to provide infor- Besides the freshwater mussel sam- mation from watersheds where few or no pling described, additional information was previous freshwater mussel surveys had been obtained incidentally while completing survey completed. Locations were waded and visu- work for fishes. Notes were made on live ally (if possible) and physically searched for freshwater mussels and shell material encoun- live freshwater mussels and dead shell mate- tered, although no formal surveys were com- rial. At locations where visibility was limited. pleted. FISHER—MUSSELS OF THE WABASH RIVER 105 . 1. Table 1 —Current status of freshwater mussels Table —Continued. (Order Unionoida) in the Wabash River drainage of Indiana. Scientific and common names follow Tur- Species Statu 1 geon et al. (1998). L = reproducing populations of Lasmigona costata (flutedshellj I. species still found in mainstem Wabash River and Leptodea fragilis (fragile papershell) L its tributaries; XT = reproducing populations of Leptodea leptodon (scaleshell) X species historically found in mainstem Wabash Riv- Ligumia recta (black sandshell) L er but now restricted to its tributaries; T = repro- Ligumia subrostrata (pondmussel) T ducing populations of species always restricted to Megalonaias nervosa (washboard) XT Wabash River tributaries; X = species extirpated Obliquaria reflexa (threehorn warty back) L from entire Wabash River drainage. Obovaria olivaria (hickorynut) L Obovaria retusa (ring pink) X Species Status Obovaria subrotunda (round hickorynut) XT Family Margaritiferidae Plethobasus cicatricosus (white warty- Cumberlandia monodonta (spectaclecase) X back) X Plethobasus cooperianus (orangefoot Family Unionidae pimpleback) X Actinonaias ligamentina (mucket) L Plethobasus cyphyus (sheepnose) XT Alasmidonta marginata (elktoe) L Pleurobema clava (clubshell) XT Alasmidonta viridis (slippershell mussel) T Pleurobema cordatum (Ohio pigtoe) XT Amblema plicata (threeridge) L Pleurobema plenum (rough pigtoe) X Anodonta suborbiculata (flat floater) T Pleurobema rubrum (pyramid pigtoe) X Andontoides ferussacianus (cylindrical Pleurobema sintoxia (round pigtoe) L papershell) T Potamilus alatus (pink heelsplitter) L Arcidens confragosus (rock pocketbook) XT Potamilus capax (fat pocketbook) L Cyclonaias tuberculata (purple warty- Potamilus ohiensis (pink papershell) L back) L Ptychobranchus fasciolaris (kidneyshell) XT Cyprogenia stegaria (fanshell) XT Pyganodon grandis (giant floater) L Ellipsaria lineolata (butterfly) XT Quadrula cylindrica cylindrica (rabbits- Elliptic* crassidens (elephantear) XT foot) XT Elliptic) dilatata (spike) XT Quadrula fragosa (winged mapleleaf) X Epioblasma flexuosa (leafshell) X Quadrula metanevra (monkeyface) L Epioblasma obliquata perobliqua (white Quadrula nodulata (wartyback) L catspaw) X Quadrula pustulosa pustulosa (pimple- Epioblasma personata (round combshell) X back) L rif- Epioblasma propinqua (Tennessee Quadrula quadrula (mapleleaf) I. fleshell) X Simpsonaias ambigua (salamander mus- Epioblasma sampsonii (Wabash riffle- sel) XT shell) X Strophitus undulatus (creeper) L Epioblasma torulosa rangiana (northern Toxolasma lividus (purple lilliput) XT riffleshell) X Toxolasma parvus (lilliput) T Epioblasma torulosa torulosa (tubercled Toxolasma texasiensis (Texas lilliput) T blossom) X Tritogonia verrucosa (pistolgrip) L Epioblasma triquetra (snuffbox) XT Truncilla donaciformis (fawnsfoot) L Fusconaia ebena (ebonyshell) XT Truncilla truncata (deertoe) 1 Fusconaia flava (Wabash pigtoe) L Uniomcrus tetralasmus (pondhorn) T Fusconaia subrotunda (longsolid) X Utterbackia imbecillis (paper pondshell) 1 Hemistena lata (cracking pearlymussel) X Villosa fabalis (rayed bean) XT LampsHis abrupta (pink mucket) X Villosa iris (rainbow) XT Lampsilis cardium (plain pocketbook) L Villosa lienosa (little spectaclecase) T Lampsilis fasciola (wavyrayed lampmus- sel) L Lampsilis ovata (pocketbook) L Lampsilis siliquoidea (fatmucket) L RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Lampsilis teres (yellow sandshell) L For the purpose o( this paper, Lasmigona complanata (white heelsplit- freshwater ter) L mussel species are considered extirpated if Lasmigona compressa (creek heelsplitter) T they no longer maintain a reproducing popu- lation. It is possible remnant live individuals 8 106 PROCEEDINGS OF