Golden but not precious: first quali-quantitative data on golden mussels bioinvasion in the Amazon

Abstract The invasive bivalve mollusk Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker 1857), commonly known as the “golden mussel”, was recently recorded in the Amazon region, in August 2023 on the Tocantins River (State of Pará). Native to Southeast Asia, L. fortunei has been present in Brazilian waters since the 1990s and, due to its biological and ecological characteristics, found an environment favorable to its proliferation in the country. Numerous records of the species and the significant environmental and economic impacts it causes are well-documented in the scientific literature. Here, we present the first qualitative and quantitative data on the bioinvasion of L. fortunei in the Brazilian Amazon region. Sampling was conducted in October 2024 in three sites at the Pedral do Lourenço, a rock formation in the Tocantins River located between the municipalities of Marabá and Tucuruí (State of Pará). The specimens exhibited an average total length of 12.22±4.19 mm, with average population density of mussels found of 11,940 ind.m2, with sizes between 1.92 mm and 22.10 mm, with records reaching 15,849 ind.m2. This study represents the first preliminary data on the population structure of L. fortunei for the Amazon region. The results suggest a recent settlement in the Tocantins River, with evidence of at least one reproductive cycle already completed. Monitoring a broader area of the Tocantins River and its tributaries will provide a better diagnosis of the invasion.

• Publication year

  2025

• Venue

  Acta Limnologica Brasiliensia

• Publication date

  Unknown publication date

• Fields of study

  Not labeled

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1590/s2179-975x4925
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

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