Snuffbox and Rayed Bean Mussels: Freshwater Species

Two colorfully named freshwater mussels received protection under the Endangered Species Act this week: the snuffbox and rayed bean.
As NG Freshwater Fellow Sandra Postel has pointed out before, freshwater mussels as a group are among the most critically endangered species in North America.
Although they have long served as an important food source for a wide variety of animals (including people), freshwater mussels are highly sensitive to poor water quality and large-scale changes in the flows of rivers. As we have altered and polluted rivers, freshwater mussels, which live by filtering tiny bits of food out of water, have been hard hit.
Besides depriving other animals of a high-quality food source, the loss of freshwater mussels has further harmed water quality because the animals filter out pollutants over time.
The snuffbox (Epioblasma triquetra) is a medium-sized, yellow mussel with triangular-shaped females and oval-shaped males.  It tends to live in small to medium-sized creeks with a swift current, although it is also found in Lake Erie and in some larger rivers.

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