Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel
Freshwater pearl mussels (FPMs, <i>Margaritifera margaritifera,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) are endangered and particularly vulnerable to climate change. To create effective conservation strategies, we studied their thermal tolerance and the impact of elevated water temperatures on growth and su...
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MDPI AG
2024-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/16/1/39 |
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| author | Annekatrin Wagner Daniel Linke Felix Grunicke Thomas U. Berendonk |
| author_facet | Annekatrin Wagner Daniel Linke Felix Grunicke Thomas U. Berendonk |
| author_sort | Annekatrin Wagner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Freshwater pearl mussels (FPMs, <i>Margaritifera margaritifera,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) are endangered and particularly vulnerable to climate change. To create effective conservation strategies, we studied their thermal tolerance and the impact of elevated water temperatures on growth and survival. Our experiments included field mesocosm studies in five FPM-streams in the Vogtland region (Germany) (2016 to 2020), as well as laboratory experiments at temperatures ranging from 1 to 26 °C. Growth of juvenile FPMs increased significantly within a temperature gradient from 12 to 21 °C. In the streams, maximum growth was 8.9 µm/d in surface water and 6.5 µm/d in the interstitial. The upper thermal tolerance for the mussels ranged from 22.1 to 22.9 °C, resulting in low survival during hot summer periods in 2018 and 2019. Warming during winter (+5 °C) did not significantly affect growth and survival, but survival during winter increased with the pre-overwintering shell length. Exceeding a shell length of about 1100 µm in December indicating gill development corelated to 50% survival. Shell length in December is primarily controlled by growth depending on water temperatures during summer. These findings define the thermal niche of juvenile FPMs (average summer temperatures of 14.5–21 °C) and have implications for water management, conservation strategies, and site selection for releasing captive-breeding mussels. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T11:00:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-98a12cbbbe2d4f1d845922076ca037b7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1424-2818 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T11:00:19Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-98a12cbbbe2d4f1d845922076ca037b72024-01-26T16:05:14ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182024-01-011613910.3390/d16010039Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater MusselAnnekatrin Wagner0Daniel Linke1Felix Grunicke2Thomas U. Berendonk3Institute of Hydrobiology, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01062 Dresden, GermanyInstitute of Hydrobiology, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01062 Dresden, GermanyInstitute of Hydrobiology, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01062 Dresden, GermanyInstitute of Hydrobiology, Technische Universität Dresden, D-01062 Dresden, GermanyFreshwater pearl mussels (FPMs, <i>Margaritifera margaritifera,</i> Linnaeus, 1758) are endangered and particularly vulnerable to climate change. To create effective conservation strategies, we studied their thermal tolerance and the impact of elevated water temperatures on growth and survival. Our experiments included field mesocosm studies in five FPM-streams in the Vogtland region (Germany) (2016 to 2020), as well as laboratory experiments at temperatures ranging from 1 to 26 °C. Growth of juvenile FPMs increased significantly within a temperature gradient from 12 to 21 °C. In the streams, maximum growth was 8.9 µm/d in surface water and 6.5 µm/d in the interstitial. The upper thermal tolerance for the mussels ranged from 22.1 to 22.9 °C, resulting in low survival during hot summer periods in 2018 and 2019. Warming during winter (+5 °C) did not significantly affect growth and survival, but survival during winter increased with the pre-overwintering shell length. Exceeding a shell length of about 1100 µm in December indicating gill development corelated to 50% survival. Shell length in December is primarily controlled by growth depending on water temperatures during summer. These findings define the thermal niche of juvenile FPMs (average summer temperatures of 14.5–21 °C) and have implications for water management, conservation strategies, and site selection for releasing captive-breeding mussels.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/16/1/39freshwater pearl musselthermal thresholdgrowthsurvivalwater temperaturesummer |
| spellingShingle | Annekatrin Wagner Daniel Linke Felix Grunicke Thomas U. Berendonk Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel Diversity freshwater pearl mussel thermal threshold growth survival water temperature summer |
| title | Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel |
| title_full | Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel |
| title_fullStr | Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel |
| title_full_unstemmed | Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel |
| title_short | Thermal Tolerance and Vulnerability to Climate Change of a Threatened Freshwater Mussel |
| title_sort | thermal tolerance and vulnerability to climate change of a threatened freshwater mussel |
| topic | freshwater pearl mussel thermal threshold growth survival water temperature summer |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/16/1/39 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT annekatrinwagner thermaltoleranceandvulnerabilitytoclimatechangeofathreatenedfreshwatermussel AT daniellinke thermaltoleranceandvulnerabilitytoclimatechangeofathreatenedfreshwatermussel AT felixgrunicke thermaltoleranceandvulnerabilitytoclimatechangeofathreatenedfreshwatermussel AT thomasuberendonk thermaltoleranceandvulnerabilitytoclimatechangeofathreatenedfreshwatermussel |