Landscape Analysis of Freshwater Mussels in the Upper Mississippi River Basin

Publisher: USGS | Science Center: Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center (UMESC, LaCrosse) | Format: URL

www.umesc.usgs.gov — Freshwater mussels are the largest group of federally listed endangered or threatened invertebrates, and their declines may signal declining riverine health. They are a renewable resource, providing significant ecological and economic benefits to the Nation. Our study uses a landscape-level approach to assess whether the distribution of mussels More... Freshwater mussels are the largest group of federally listed endangered or threatened invertebrates, and their declines may signal declining riverine health. They are a renewable resource, providing significant ecological and economic benefits to the Nation. Our study uses a landscape-level approach to assess whether the distribution of mussels can be predicted from a variety of features in the surrounding landscape. These features will likely differ depending on the scale of the analyses, but may include the following: distribution of host fishes, hydrologic measurements in the river bed, land-use and land-cover in the surrounding area, and proximity to the main navigation channel. Less...