Mussels (Bivalva: Unionoidea) of the Cumberland River: Review of Life Histories and Ecological Relationships.
Abstract
The Cumberland region long has been recognized as a center of molluscan endemism in North America (Binney 1885; Ortmann 1918, 1924a, 1925). Among the geographic faunal zones delimited for mussels by van der Schalie and van der Schalie (1950), the Cumberlandian fauna is the most speciose and possesses the greatest number of localized endemics. This area principally comprises the highland portions of the Cumberland and Tennessee river drainage basins. Although numerous studies have considered the aquatic Mollusca of the region, most have been faunal surveys or taxonomic reviews primarily concerned with the Tennessee River system (Appendix A). Two major studies extensively examined the mussel fauna of the Cumberland River (Wilson and Clark 1914; Neel and Allen 1964), while other investigations have surveyed more limited areas or tributaries (Appendix B). Recent statewide surveys of molluscs in Tennessee and Kentucky also have included records for the Cumberland River system (Bogan and Parmalee 1983; Starnes and Bogan 1988; Schuster 1988). Several species have been described from that river drainage (see Say 1829, 1831; Rafinesque 1831; Lea 1834-1874; Conrad 1836-1840) and specimens originating from the basin have been included in taxonomic and biogeographic reviews (e.g., Johnson 1978, 1980; Clarke 1981, 1985). Few, if any, studies have provided more than cursory considerations of ecology or reproductive biology for mussels indigenous to the Cumberland River system.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA323416
Entities
People
- James B. Layzer
- Mark E. Gordon