TENNESSEE FRESHWATER MUSSELS:
Treasures Past and Present

INTRODUCTION

From to pearl buttons of the early 1900s to the contemporary cultured pearl industry, shells of freshwater mussels have been used by humans for centuries. This exhibit explores the biology and history of human use of these little-seen Tennessee animals.

With more than 150 species and subspecies recorded in the state, Tennessee has one of the most diverse freshwater mussel faunas in North America.

TENNESSEE FRESHWATER MUSSELS

Turncilla donaciformis (Fawnsfoot)

Epioblasma flexuosa (Leafshell)

Lampsilis fasciola (Wavyrayed Lampmussel) (24K)

Obovaria retusa (Ringpink) (19K)

Quadrula quadrula (Mapleleaf) (22K)

Quadrula cylindrica (Rabbitsfoot) (21K)

THE EXHIBIT

Background illustrations depict the life cycle of a freshwater mussel, from the larvae (glochidia) being expelled into the water by the female mussel, and their parasitic stage on the gills of a fish, to the free-living stage on the bottom of a lake or river.

DIAGRAMMATIC ILLUSTRATION OF THE LIFE CYCLE OF A FRESHWATER MUSSEL. (87K) Photo courtesy of John Christmas, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Annapolis, Maryland.

Literally millions of freshwater mussels were gathered by the prehistoric aboriginal peoples who lived along the major rivers in Tennessee. These shellfish served as an important supplemental food resource, while the shells themselves were often modified into various tools, such as scrapers and "hoes," bowls and "spoons," and ornaments -- examples of which may be seen in the Museum exhibit.

VALVES OF THE POCKETBOOK (Lampsilis ovata), RECOVERED FROM ABORIGINAL SITES, WHICH HAVE BEEN MODIFIED AND PROBABLY USED AS SPOONS. (40K) Woodpecker head effigy spoon courtesy Tennessee State Museum, Gates P. Thurston Collection of Vanderbilt University.

During historic times, freshwater mussels were harvested for their shells, which were used in the manufacture of pearl buttons and later (after 1950) in the cultured pearl industry. Displayed in the exhibit are some of the tools (for example, the brail bar and hooks) used to dredge mussels from the river bottom, plus examples of drilled valves and the quality buttons that were cut from them.

MUSSEL SHELLS FROM WHICH BUTTON BLANKS WERE CUT, AND A SELECTION OF BLANKS. (56K)

Shells of two exotic species of bivalves, the Asian Clam and Zebra Mussel, that have invaded many of the rivers and lakes of Tennessee, are also displayed.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Additional information on Tennessee's freshwater mussels is available in The Freshwater Mussels of Tennessee, authored by Dr. Paul W. Parmalee, curator of the McClung Museum's extensive freshwater mussel collection, and Dr. Arthur E. Bogan, North Carolina State Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina.

This volume was published in 1998 by the University of Tennessee Press. The work, a major reference that describes the various mussel species, their ecology, and distribution, is available in the McClung Museum Shop.

SELECTED WEB RESOURCES

	American Freshwater Mussels - Conchologist's Information Network (Conch-Net)
	Freshwater Mussels - Congressional Research Service
	Freshwater Mussels: America's Hidden Treasure - US Fish and Wildlife Service
	Freshwater Mussels in Alabama - Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries
	Freshwater Pearl - Tennessee State Gem - University of Tennessee, Martin
	INHS Mollusk Collection - Illinois Natural History Survey

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