Geomorphic controls on the distribution of freshwater mussels in the Angelo Coast Range Reserve
Jeanette Howard
and Kurt Cuffey
Department of
Geography, UC Berkeley
Introduction
Over the past decade, freshwater mussels in many
regions of the United States have been the
subject of numerous studies, motivated by
observations of rapid declines in their populations.
Yet, little is known about the landscape-scale controls on mussel habitat. Therefore, the main research
objectives of freshwater mussel studies in the Angelo
Coast Range reserve are to better
understand how physical conditions in
the Coast Range rivers' channels control the spatial distribution of mussels.
Freshwater mussels in California provide a unique
opportunity for examining links
between fluvial processes and biotic communities,
and for recording stream conditions because they are long-lived (some species can live > 100
years), relatively sedentary, directly
depend on the base of the stream food web, and
record annual growth in their shells.
