Effects of Adult Dreissena polymorpha on Settling Juveniles and Associated Macroinvertebrates

Abstract

The impact of Dreissena polymorpha settlement on recruitment of juvenile mussels and density of other macroinvertebrates was studied in field experiments using blank concrete blocks and tiles (control), blocks and tiles with attached empty zebra mussel shells, and blocks and tiles with attached living mussels. On blocks, dominant invertebrate taxa showed colonization patterns coinciding with increased habitat complexity owing to zebra mussel settlement or the biodeposition of faeces and pseudofaeces. Adult and especially juvenile zebra mussels preferred blocks with empty shells to blank blocks and blocks with living mussels; this might possibly be caused by a chemical cue that induces gregarious settlement. Lower recruitment on blocks with attached living mussels compared to blocks with only shells could be the consequence of ingestion of larvae by adult mussels and of competition for food. On tiles, the sediments deposited and the organic content of the sediment were investigated. Sedimentation was significantly higher on shell‐only and live‐mussel tiles compared to blank tiles. Organic matter differed significantly between blank and live‐mussel tiles.

The Effects of Zebra Mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) on the Foraging Success of Eurasian Perch (Perca fluviatilis) and Ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernuus)

“…In addition, owing to biodeposition by mussels, the availability of organic material is higher. Consequently, in many cases macrozoobenthos abundances increase following the colonization of hard substrates by Dreissena (GRIFFITHS, 1993;MAYER et al, 2002;MÖRTL and ROTHHAUPT, 2003;STEWART and HAYNES, 1994).…”

Effects of zebra mussels on a native amphipod and the invasiveDikerogammarus villosus: the influence of biodeposition and structural complexity

“…America have led to many changes in planktonic and benthic communities in invaded habitats (Stanczykowska et al 1976, Griffiths 1993, Roditi et al 1997, Mö rtl and Rothhaupt 2003. Filtration by mussels reduces the overall concentration of phytoplankton (e.g., Holland 1993, Nicholls andHopkins 1993) and alters the makeup of the phytoplankton community.…”

Effectiveness of zebra mussels to act as shelters from fish predators differs between native and invasive amphipod prey

“…It is often assumed that organisms utilizing mussel colonies for anti-predator protection would select both living bivalves and empty shells increasing the availability of shelters on the bottom. On the other hand, species feeding on mussel products should prefer living mussels (Stewart et al 1998;Mörtl and Rothhaupt 2003). Both these types of associations with bivalves have been exhibited by various gammarid species: for instance, D. haemobaphes and Gammarus roeselii Gervais, 1835 preferred living mussels (Mörtl and Rothhaupt 2003;Kobak et al 2009), whereas Gammarus fasciatus Say, 1818 and Gammarus fossarum Koch, 1836 selected empty shells as well (Gonzalez and Downing 1999;Kobak and _ Zytkowicz 2007).…”

“…On the other hand, species feeding on mussel products should prefer living mussels (Stewart et al 1998;Mörtl and Rothhaupt 2003). Both these types of associations with bivalves have been exhibited by various gammarid species: for instance, D. haemobaphes and Gammarus roeselii Gervais, 1835 preferred living mussels (Mörtl and Rothhaupt 2003;Kobak et al 2009), whereas Gammarus fasciatus Say, 1818 and Gammarus fossarum Koch, 1836 selected empty shells as well (Gonzalez and Downing 1999;Kobak and _ Zytkowicz 2007). Ponto-Caspian gammarids invaded Europe in the last century (Ja_ zd_ zewski et al 2002), considerably affecting local environments due to their tolerance to wide ranges of environmental factors, gregariousness and omnivory with a strong tendency for predation (Devin and Beisel 2007;Grabowski et al 2007;Bącela-Spychalska and van der Velde 2013).…”