Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

SS38 From Molecules to Ecosystems: A Hierarchy of Mussel Biology and Ecology (Spatial and Temporal Connections)

Date: Tuesday, February 13, 2001, Time: 10:45:00 AM

Location: Cimarron

Schneider, D, W, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Illinois, Champaign, USA, ddws@uiuc.edu

Rehmann, C, R, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, USA, rehmann@uiuc.edu

Stoeckel, J, A, Center for Aquatic Ecology, Illinois Natural History Survey, Havana, USA, stoeckel@uiuc.edu

Padilla, D, K, Department of Ecology and Evolution, SUNY, Stony Brook, Stony Brook, USA, padilla@life.bio.sunysb.edu

Sparks, R, E, Water Resources Center, University of Illinois, Urbana, USA, rsparks@uiuc.edu

THE ZEBRA MUSSEL (DREISSENA POLYMORPHA) AS A MODEL ORGANISM FOR EXAMINING MARINE METAPOPULATION DYNAMICS

Difficulty in studying the dynamics of larval dispersal, growth and mortality in the marine environment has hampered the development and application of metapopulation models to the population dynamics of marine mussels and other species. The zebra mussel represents an ideal system for studying larval dynamics and developing metapopulation models. We have used a Lagrangian approach to studying the zebra mussel in the connected waters of Lake Michigan and the Illinois River. We have tracked cohorts of larvae as they move from Lake Michigan and downstream in the Illinois River and measured growth and mortality rates that take into account advection and dispersion. Contrary to the usual models of constant mortality, we find mortality to be stage/age dependent. These data, coupled with information on adult growth, fecundity and mortality will allow the development of a metapopulation model of the zebra mussel. Preliminary analyses suggest that zebra mussels in the Illinois River may be controlled by limiting dispersal of larvae from Lake Michigan.

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Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

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