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Critical swimming speed of brown trout (Salmo trutta) infested with freshwater pearl mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) glochidia and implications for artificial breeding of an endangered mussel species

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Abstract

Unionid freshwater mussels need to attach to a host fish for completion of their life cycle. It remains unclear whether the relationship between these mussels and their host fishes can be considered parasitic, mutualistic, or commensal. Herein, we studied the effects of Margaritifera margaritifera infestation on Salmo trutta, the most important host of this endangered mussel species in Central Europe. Glochidial load of host fish increased with increasing glochidial concentration, but the highest ratios of encysted glochidia to exposed glochidia were found at low concentration (15,000 glochidia L−1) during infestation. Host fish mortality occurred at infestation rates of ~350 glochidia per g fish weight and was highest (60 %) at the highest infestation rates (~900 glochidia per g fish weight). On a sublethal level, swimming performance of hosts was inversely related to infestation rates, with infestation of ~900 glochidia per g fish weight reducing critical swimming speed of S. trutta significantly by ~20 % compared to infestation with 6 glochidia per g fish weight. The high mortality and the impaired swimming capability of highly infested hosts indicate a parasitic interaction between M. margaritifera and its host. For conservation and reintroduction of M. margaritifera via glochidia-infested S. trutta, we recommend glochidial loads of 5–100 glochidia per g fish weight, while for artificial breeding of juvenile M. margaritifera under laboratory conditions, higher infestation rates of up to 300 glochidia per g fish weight are ideal to balance high yields of mussels and welfare of host fishes.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the assistance of C. Taeubert and K.-U. Taeubert during construction of the swimming flume. We thank Bielefeld GmbH for providing the impeller pump. We are also grateful to Dr. Kisling and Dr. Brill for their support concerning animal care.

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  1. Aquatic Systems Biology Unit, Department of Ecology and Ecosystem Management, Technische Universität München, Mühlenweg 22, 85350, Freising, Germany

    Jens-Eike Taeubert & Juergen Geist

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  1. Jens-Eike Taeubert
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  2. Juergen Geist
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Correspondence to Juergen Geist.

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Taeubert, JE., Geist, J. Critical swimming speed of brown trout (Salmo trutta) infested with freshwater pearl mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) glochidia and implications for artificial breeding of an endangered mussel species. Parasitol Res 112, 1607–1613 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-013-3314-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-013-3314-6

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