Abstract

About one third of the world's freshwater mussels (order Unionida, families Margaritiferidae and Unionidae) reside in North America, with the majority ranging in the southeast United States. Unfortunately, due to anthropogenic disturbance, Unionid mussels are considered to be one of the most imperiled groups of animals in the world. North Carolina is home to over 65 Unionid species, over 50% of which are federally listed as Threatened or Endangered. In order to combat this decline, stocking and relocation techniques are commonly used. In this study, we reintroduce historically-occurring Unionid mussels into the French Broad River (FBR) and compare post-stocking monitoring techniques. Lampsilis fasciola mussels were reared at the Marion fish hatchery, Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tagged and stocked in the upper FBR. The release site was surveyed seven times over 3 months using radio frequency identification (RFID) and visual encounter surveys (VES) to identify released mussels. RFID provided a higher level of encounter, with an average of 83.4% detection, compared to an average 3.21% detection using VES. The information gathered from these efforts provide data for conservation measures in the future to further help stabilize threatened and endangered species, including Alasmidonta raveneliana populations.

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