Ortmanniana ligamentina
| Ortmanniana ligamentina | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Unionida |
| Family: | Unionidae |
| Genus: | Ortmanniana |
| Species: | O. ligamentina
|
| Binomial name | |
| Ortmanniana ligamentina (Lamarck, 1819)
| |
| Synonyms[3] | |
|
List
| |
Ortmanniana ligamentina, commonly known as the mucket, is a species of freshwater mussel in the family Unionidae. It is native to eastern North America.
Taxonomy and history
This species was described by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck in 1819 as Unio ligamentina, based on a type specimen from the Ohio River.[3][4][5] The type is deposited in the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris, France.[6] Arnold Edward Ortmann transferred the species to the genus Actinonaias in a 1919 monograph published in the Memoirs of the Carnegie Museum,[5] however, this placement was considered dubious, given that the type species of Actinonaias hails from Central America. Some authorities recognised two subspecies, A. ligamentina carinata and A. ligamentina ligamentina, but most workers did not differentiate between the two.[6] A 2021 checklist of the order Unionida published in the Journal of Molluscan Studies transferred this species to the genus Ortmanniana,[2][7] placing it in the tribe Lampsilini within the unionid subfamily Ambleminae and recognizing no infraspecific taxa.[7]
It is one of several North American freshwater mussel species known by the common name mucket.[8][9]
Distribution and habitat
Native to eastern North America, Ortmanniana ligamentina is a widespread freshwater species known from the Mississippi River basin (including the Tennessee River and Cumberland River drainages), the St. Lawrence River basin, and the tributaries of Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, and Lake Ontario.[1][2][5] This range includes waterways in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Québec and the United States states of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.[1][2] It is typically found in rivers or creeks at depths of 1 m (3 ft 3 in) or less on cobble, gravel, sand, or mud substrates. It is often found in riffles with strong currents, but also occurs in gentler streams, lakes, and ponds.[1][2][5]
Description
Ortmanniana ligamentina is a large species of mussel, with adults reaching up to 140 mm (5.5 in) long. The stout shell may be oval, oblong, or elliptical in shape. The anterior end of the shell is broadly rounded, while the posterior end may be broadly rounded or somewhat pointed. The periostracum is light yellowish brown to greenish in color, becoming dark brown or dull olive yellow with age. The periostracum may also exhibit broad, interrupted or uninterrupted dark green rays, though these are not present in all specimens. The external surface of the shell is relatively smooth but often marked with irregular raised concentric ridges. The nacre is white, becoming iridescent towards the posterior end of the shell.[5]
Sexual dimorphism is not often noticeable in this species, though some female specimens may exhibit a more inflated posterior. Young individuals may appear somewhat compressed, and the shell thickens with age.[5]
Ecology
Adult Ortmanniana ligamentina are filter feeders, consuming bacteria, plankton, and detritus suspended in the water column.[2] The glochidia are parasites of freshwater fish, with known hosts including the American eel (Anguilla rostrata), banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus), bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus), white crappie (Pomoxis annularis), common carp (Cyprinus carpio), green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus), orangespotted sunfish (Lepomis humilis), largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), roach (Rutilus rutilus), rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris), sauger (Stizostedion canadense), silverjaw minnow (Ericymba buccata), tadpole madtom (Noturus gyrinus), Tippecanoe darter (Etheostoma tippecanoe), white bass (Marone chrysops), and yellow perch (Perea flavescens).[5][6]
Breeding is reported to occur from August to May.[5] Females are bradytictic and begin developing eggs in mid-summer, with glochidia present from September through May to August of the following year. Individuals may live for up to 25 years, reaching sexual maturity at approximately 4 to 6 years of age.[6]
References
- ^ a b c d Cordeiro, J. (2011). "Actinonaias ligamentina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011 e.T189504A8740755. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T189504A8740755.en. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f NatureServe. "Ortmanniana ligamentina". NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
- ^ a b Bieler R, Bouchet P, Gofas S, Marshall B, Rosenberg G, La Perna R, Neubauer TA, Sartori AF, Schneider S, Vos C, ter Poorten JJ, Taylor J, Dijkstra H, Finn J, Bank R, Neubert E, Moretzsohn F, Faber M, Houart R, Picton B, Garcia-Alvarez O (eds.). "Ortmanniana ligamentina (Lamarck, 1819)". MolluscaBase. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ Lamarck, Jean-Baptiste-Pierre-Antoine de Monet de (1819). Histoire naturelle des animaux sans vertèbres ... précédée d'une introduction offrant la détermination des caractères essentiels de l'animal, sa distinction du végétal et des autres corps naturels, enfin, l'exposition des principes fondamentaux de la zoologie (in French). Vol. 6. p. 72. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.12712. LCCN 07018340. OCLC 5269931 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Parmalee, Paul Woodburn; Bogan, Arthur E. (1998). The Freshwater Mussels of Tennessee (1st ed.). Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. pp. 51–53. ISBN 978-1-57233-013-9 – via ResearchGate.
- ^ a b c d Watters, G. Thomas; Hoggarth, Michael A.; Stansbery, David H. (2009). The Freshwater Mussels of Ohio. Columbus: Ohio State University Press. pp. 32–40. ISBN 978-0-8142-1105-2. OCLC 741494963 – via Project MUSE.
- ^ a b Graf, Daniel L.; Cummings, Kevin S. (2021). "A 'big data' approach to global freshwater mussel diversity (Bivalvia: Unionoida), with an updated checklist of genera and species". Journal of Molluscan Studies. 87 (1). doi:10.1093/mollus/eyaa034. ISSN 1464-3766. OCLC 42456384.
- ^ "mucket". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/OED/9992144647. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
- ^ Turgeon, D.D.; Quinn Jr., J.F.; Bogan, A.E.; Coan, E.V.; Hochberg, F.G.; Lyons, W.G.; Mikkelsen, P.M.; Neves, R.J.; Roper, C.F.E.; Rosenberg, G.; Roth, B.; Scheltema, A.; Thompson, F.G.; Vecchione, M.; Williams, J.D. (1998). Common and Scientific Names of Aquatic Invertebrates from the United States and Canada: Mollusks. Special Publication 26 (Second ed.). Bethesda, Maryland: American Fisheries Society. pp. 32–35. ISBN 1-888569-01-8. ISSN 0097-0638. LCCN 98-85464.