Invasive dreissenid mussels benefit invasive crayfish but not native crayfish in the Laurentian Great Lakes

Impacts of native and invasive crayfish on three native and one invasive freshwater mussel species

“…Across all of our laboratory experimental parts and all used mussel species, shell damage caused by crayfish could be observed. This was expected from previous studies that report mussel predation effects by crayfish (Glon et al., 2017; Klocker & Strayer, 2004; Machida & Akiyama, 2013; Meira et al., 2019; Perry et al., 1997; Schmidt & Vandré, 2012; Sousa et al., 2019). To the best of our knowledge, no other study had yet applied a cross‐experimental design with native and invasive crayfish as well as native and invasive unionids, allowing a direct comparison of predation effects.…”

“…Previous studies already showed evidence for crayfish predation on unionids (Machida & Akiyama, 2013;Meira et al, 2019;Schmidt & Vandré, 2012;Sousa et al, 2019) and on dreissenids (Glon et al, 2017;zu Ermgassen & Aldridge, 2011). However, the following questions have not yet been answered: (a) Are invasive crayfish more problematic than native ones concerning predation on unionids?…”

Of olives and carp: interactive effects of an aquatic and a terrestrial invader on a stream‐riparian ecosystem

“…Similarly, a previous study demonstrated that the combined effects of rusty crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) and the Chinese mystery snail (Bellamya chinensis) had greater consequences for native snail communities compared to when they occurred alone (Johnson et al 2009). More recently, invasive dreissenid mussels increased growth and activity of rusty crayfish leading to lower survival of a native crayfish (Glon et al 2017). Although few studies have directly investigated the possibility, it seems likely that multiple invasive species are involved in a variety of complex interactions.…”

When worlds collide: Invader-driven benthic habitat complexity alters predatory impacts of invasive and native predatory fishes

“…Yet the balance of this coexistence can be impacted by invader-driven habitat complexity, with negative consequences for native C. gobio. Already, several studies have shown that the presence of invasive bivalves can benefit other invaders and negatively impact native species in large freshwater ecosystems, such as the facilitation of dominance shifts for an invasive crayfish over a congeneric native in the Laurentian Great Lakes (Glon et al, 2017), as well as for invasive freshwater macrophytes spp. in Lough Erne (Crane et al, 2020).…”