Life History Traits of a Riverine Population of the Asian Clam Corbicula fluminea

Monthly collections of Corbicula fluminea were taken for 1 yr from a small river (depth range 0.1-1.1 m) near Charlottesville, Virginia. Mean densities ranged from 173-2990 clams$\cdotm^{-2}$, with an annual mean of 677 clams$\cdotm^{-2}$. Based on the time-series of shell-length frequency distribut...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American midland naturalist 1992-04, Vol.127 (2), p.248-257
Main Author: Hornbach, Daniel J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Clams
Corbicula fluminea
Frequency distribution
Fresh water
Freshwater
Freshwater ecology
Genetic variation
Larvae
Phenotypic traits
Population dynamics
Population growth
Research universities
Rivers
Shellfish
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Summary:Monthly collections of Corbicula fluminea were taken for 1 yr from a small river (depth range 0.1-1.1 m) near Charlottesville, Virginia. Mean densities ranged from 173-2990 clams$\cdotm^{-2}$, with an annual mean of 677 clams$\cdotm^{-2}$. Based on the time-series of shell-length frequency distributions and from dissections of adults, it appeared that there was one generation produced per year with the first detectable newborns (shell length ≈ 0.4 mm) settling in the substrate during July. Maximum lifespan was 2-3 yr during which clams reached average shell lengths of 11.1 mm in the 1st yr and 17.6 mm in the 2nd yr of life. Other studies have most often reported two generations produced per year with lifespans of 2-4 yr and maximal shell lengths of 30-60 mm. It is suggested that much of the variation in life history displayed by this introduced species in phenotypic.
ISSN:0003-0031
1938-4238
DOI:10.2307/2426531