Description
Potentially Misidentified Species - B. japonica (Japanese Mystery Snail) is synonymized by some authors and considered distinct by others (Clench and Fuller 1965; Jokinen 1982). Clench and Fuller (1965) have identified B. japonica from OK, MI, and MA. V. georgianus is native to the Mississippi Basin and southeast United States and introduced in the Potomac (Clench 1962). Smith (2000) presented anatomical arguments for applying the genus name Bellamya to these snails, and described differences between the two species Based on these descriptions, and an informal collection of shells, both species are present in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animalia | Mollusca | Gastropoda | Monotocardia | Viviparidae | Cipangopaludina |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Established | Expanding | Introduced | Regular Resident | North America | East Asia | Ornamental(Aquatic Plant,Pet Release),Fisheries(Fisheries Accidental) |
History of Spread
Bellamya chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail) is native to Asia. The taxonomic distinctness of B. japonica (Japanese Mystery Snail) has been debated (Clench and Fuller 1965; Jokinen 1982). Smith (2000) provided a description of characters for distinguishing the two species. Here, we will lump the few B. japonica records with the many for B. chinensis. This snail was first found in North America as a living food item in Chinese markets in San Francisco in 1892. By 1911, they were established in the region between San Jose and San Francisco, and were collected in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta by 1938. This large handsome freshwater snail, quickly found its way into the aquarium trade , and is frequently kept in aquaria and goldfish ponds. B. chinensis has become widespread in scattered locations, mostly ponds, lakes, and reservoirs, but sometimes also colonizing river systems, from CA to British Columbia and FL to ME and Quebec. Populations are probably more numerous than the widely separated records indicate (Clench and Fuller 1965; Jokinen 1982). Elsewhere in the world, in 2009 and 2010, specimens of this snail were found in 3 freshwater ponds in the Netherlands, These are the first records of this snail known from Europe (Soes et al. 2011).
Atlantic Coast records follow below:
Great Lakes - St. Lawrence River - B. chinensis was possibly released into the Niagara River in 1931, and became well established by 1942. It was introduced to Lake Erie by fishermen as food for Ictalurus punctatus (Channel Catfish), and became abundant in Sandusky Bay OH (Mills et al. 1993). B. chinensis became established in the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers around Montreal by 1971 (Jokinen 1982; Stanczykowska et al. 1971).
Charles River System, Boston - In 1914, B. chinensis was found in the Muddy River, in Fenway Park, Boston MA where it may have been accidentally introduced with goldfish (Johnson 1918).
Hudson River - In the Hudson River Basin, B. chinensis was first collected at Niskayuna, Schenectady County, 1920. It is now abundant in scattered locations in ponds(Strayer 1987; Mills et al. 1997).
Delaware River - B. chinensis was introduced to Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, and was established in the Schuykill River by 1925 (Richards and Adams 1929). Dundee (1974) lists additional records from the Delaware River in NJ-PA (Dundee 1974).
Southeast United States - There are a few scattered southeastern records: NC; SC; FL, TX, OK (Clench and Fuller 1965; Jokinen 1982; Florida Caribbean Science Center 2001).
Chesapeake Bay Drainage:
Susquehanna River- B. chinensis was collected from ponds in Lancaster and Lebanon PA (Clench and Fuller 1965). In 2000 and 2001, many shells were found in the tidal Susquehanna at Susquehanna State Park near the mouth of Deer Creek (Fofonoff, unpublished data).
Potomac River- Specimens were collected at Jones Point Lighthouse, Alexandria VA, 1960 (United States National Museum of Natural History Collection) and from '1/4 mile below Woodrow Wilson Bridge' (Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia collection, no date, Dundee 1974). Several dead shells were found at Dyke Marsh, Alexandria VA, 1997-2000 (Fofonoff personal observation). Live snails were found on blocks anchoring settling plates near a powerplant in Alexandria in 1999. (Ruiz et al., unpublished data). In an informal collection of shells but B. chinensis and B. japonica were found (Fofonoff, personal observation), but a detailed study of the snails would be needed to determine the relative abundance and distribution of the two species.
James River- Bellamya chinensis was collected in 2017 in Westhampton Lake, Richmond VA, near the James River (USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Program 2017).
History References- Center for Aquatic Resource Studies 2004; Clench and Fuller 1965; Dundee 1974; Florida Caribbean Science Center 2001; Johnson 1918; Jokinen 1982; Mills et al. 1993; Mills et al. 1997; Richards and Adams 1929; Stanczykowska et al. 1971; Strayer 1987; United States National Museum of Natural History Collections
Invasion Comments
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | ||||
| Salinity (‰) | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| Oxygen | well-oxygenated | |||
| pH | 6.4000000000 | 8.4000000000 | ||
| Salinity Range | fresh-oligo |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | 32.0 | 30.0 |
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | 44.0 | 53.0 |
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | 56.0 | 75.0 |
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Typical Longevity (yrs | 3.0 | 4.0 |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
|||
| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
|||
| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
|||
| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
The abundance and distribution of Bellamya chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail) in the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed is unclear, and its economic impacts are unknown. This gastropod is an attractive and popular aquarium and fishpond snail as well as a food item once sold in Chinese markets in the United States (Jokinen 1982). This species is abundant in some regions and may have had local impacts on fisheries, either as food or by interfering with fishing. In Sandusky Bay, Lake Erie, 'fishermen often made seine hauls containing '2 tons' of snails' (Mills et al. 1993). However, it has been regarded as a relatively benign invader, with little known about its ecological impacts.
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Bellamya chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail) is an attractive and popular aquarium and fishpond snail as well as a food item once sold in Chinese markets in the United States (Jokinen 1982). This species is abundant in some regions and may have had local impacts on fisheries, either as food or by interfering with fishing. In Sandusky Bay, Lake Erie, 'fishermen often made seine hauls containing '2 tons' of snails' (Mills et al. 1993).
References- Jokinen 1982; Mills et al. 1993
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
The abundance and distribution of Bellamya chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail) is unclear, and its impacts on native species are unknown, in Chesapeake Bay. However, in feld and laboratory studies, some impacts have been found elsewhere. Competition- In recent mesocosm experiments, conducted in Wisconsin, B. chinensis negatively affected the abundance of the native snails Lymnaea stagnalis and Physa gyrinus, decreasing their abundance by 32% and 22% prspectively (Johnson et al. 2009). In the combined presence of the Rusty Crayfish and B. chinensis, abundance of L. stagnalis declined by 90%, while B. chinensis was less affected by the presence of the crayfish, with a decreased abundance of small individuals , but no reduction in biomass (Johnson et al. 2009). With a larger size and thicker shell, B. chinensis is less vulnerable to crayfish predation than the naitve snails (Johnson et al. 2009). A field survey of Wisconsin lakes indicated that the effects of B. chinensis on native snail occurrence and diversity were smaller than in the mesocosm study indicated. However, several species of native snails tended to be rare or absent when B. chinensis was abundant. 'Specifically, Lyogyrus granum the Valvata species, the Lymnaea species, Physa acuta , and Helisoma trivolvis tended not to occur at sites where B. chinensis abundance was greater than between 0 and 2 individuals m-2. The three species of Lymnaea together occurred at 19 sites where B. chinensis was absent, but at only 3 sites where B. chinensis was present. Herbivory- In mesocom experiments, addiition of B. chinensis to an assemblage of three native snails resulted in decreased biomass of sediment and wall periphyton (Johnson et al. 2009).
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
The abundance and distribution of Bellamya chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail) is unclear, and its impacts on other exotic species are unknown, in Chesapeake Bay and elsewhere.
References
Clench, William J. (1962) A catalogue of the Viviparidae of North America with notes on the distribution of Viviparus georgianus Lea, Occasional Papers on Mollusks, Museum of Comparative Zoolgy, Harvard University 2: 261-287Clench, William J.; Fuller, Samuel L. H (1965) The genus Viviparus in North America, Occasional Papers on Mollusks, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University 2: 385-412
2006-2024 The freshwater gastropods of North America. http://www.fwgna.org
Dundee, Dee S. (1974) Catalog of introduced molluscs of eastern North America (North of Mexico), Sterkiana 55: 1-37
Fretter, Vera; Graham, Alastair (1962) British prosobranch molluscs: their functional anatomy and ecology, In: (Eds.) . , London. Pp.
Johnson, C. W. (1918) Viviparus malleatus and contectoides in Massachusetts, Nautilus 31: 107-108
Johnson, Pieter T. J.; Olden, Julian D.; Solomon, Christopher T.; Vander Zanden, M. Jake (2009) Interactions among invaders: community and ecosystem effects of multiple invasive species in an experimental aquatic system, Oecologia 159: 161-170
Jokinen, Eileen H. (1982) Cipangopaludina chinensis (Gastropoda: Viviparidae) in North America, review and update, Nautilus 96: 89-95
Jokinen, Eileen H. (1983) Freshwater snails of Connecticut, State Geological and Natural History Survey of Connecticut 109:
Jokinen, Eileen H. (1992) The freshwater snails (Mollusca: Gastropoda) of New York State, New York State Museum Bulletin 482: 1-89
Mills, Edward L.; Leach, Joseph H.; Carlton, James T.; Secor, Carol L. (1993) Exotic species in the Great Lakes: a history of biotic crises and anthropogenic introductions., Journal of Great Lakes Research 19: 1-54
Mills, Edward L.; Scheuerell, Mark D.; Carlton, James T.; Strayer, David (1997) Biological invasions in the Hudson River: an inventory and historical analysis., New York State Museum Circular 57: 1-51
Richards, Horace G., Adams, Joseph W. (1929) Viviparus malleatus in Philadelphia, Nautilus 42: 141-142
Smith, Douglas G. (2000) Notes on the taxonomy of introduced Bellamya (Gastropoda: Viviparidae) species in northeastern North America., Nautilus 114: 31-37
Soes, D. Menno; Majoor, Gerard D.; Keulen, Stef M.A. (2011) Bellamya chinensis (Gray, 1834) (Gastropoda: Viviparidae), a new alien snail species for the European fauna, Aquatic Invasions 6: Corrected Proof
Stanczykowska, Anna, Magnin, Etienne, Dumouchel, André (1971) Etude de trois populations de Viviparus malleatus (Reeve) de la region de Montreal. 1. Croissance, fecondite, biomasse, et production annuelle., Canadian Journal of Zoology 49: 1431-1441
Strayer, David (1987) Ecology and zoogeography of the freshwater mollusks of the Hudson River Basin, Malacological Review 20: 1-68
2003-2024 Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database. Gainesville, FL. http://nas.er.usgs.gov