Ala., Miss. rivers-mussels research

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - More than 70 percent of freshwater mussels are imperiled by human development around rivers’ ecosystems, yet little is known about how biodiversity within species of mussels influences its function as filters. A nearly $1.8 million project from the National Science Foundation, led by the University of Alabama, hopes to identify the processes and mechanisms that underlie patterns of biodiversity in mussels. This will better arm managers of environmental resources to make informed decisions for conservation and restoration efforts to benefit the ecosystem. Dr. Carla Atkinson, a UA assistant professor of biological sciences, is leading the project. The research team will also include Dr. Jeff Lozier, a UA associate professor of biological sciences, and two researchers from the University of Mississippi: Drs. Colin Jackson, professor of biology, and Ryan Garrick, associate professor of biology. The project is one of 10 funded through the NSF’s Dimensions of Biodiversity program. Atkinson’s team will study mussels from seven rivers, five in Alabama, one each in Tennessee and Mississippi. They seek to understand how different species of mussels in the same watershed perform different functions, seeing how environmental factors such as placement, temperature and water flow influence their roles in the river. (Source: University of Alabama 10/25/18) Mussels play a key role in aquatic environments and are considered to be "ecosystem engineers" because they modify aquatic habitat. During its feeding process, mussels "clean" the water they live in by removing phytoplankton and the bacteria and fungi from non-living organic particles that are removed from the water.