Two mussel species that live in the Tennessee River watershed have been granted federal protection.
The protection effort is a result of a settlement made with the Center for Biological Diversity to make "fast-tracked protection decisions" for 757 at-risk plants and animals across the nation, a Center for Biological Diversity press release reported.
Both mussel species have been waiting for federal protection for some time now; the slabside pearlymussel has been known to be endangered since 1984, and the fluted kidneyshell has been at risk since 1999.
The pearlymussel used to reside in "Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee and Virginia," but it has since disappeared from over 70 percent of its "native streams." The species is now believed to be completely absent in Kentucky and all of the remaining populations are rapidly depleting.
The fluted kidneyshell once existed in "Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia," it has disappeared from Alabama and now can be found in only 12 of 37 of its original streams.
"More kinds of mussels are found in the Southeast than anywhere else in the entire world, but pollution and dams have driven many of them to extinction," Tierra Curry, a biologist at the Center, said. "Endangered Species Act protection for the fluted kidneyshell and slabside pearlymussel will ensure that these beautiful mollusks aren't erased from the Southeast's special natural heritage."
A number of factors are contributing to the species' decline. Nearby dams, mining, agriculture runoff, and pollution from coal mines are all bad news for the mussels.
Freshwater mussels, such as the slabside pearlymussel and fluted kidneyshell, are great indicators of water quality because they are extremely sensitive and need clean free-flowing water to survive.
The mussels reproduce by using a "lure" that looks like a small fish to deposit their eggs on a larger fish's gills. The baby mollusks live on their hosts as parasites until they are large enough to drop off. In dirty water, fish will not be able to see the lure as well, which could reduce the number of successful mussel births.
"Protecting habitat for freshwater mussels will also protect water quality people need for drinking, fishing and recreation," Curry said
